A Hero to Save Us
by BloodRedRanger
Summary: In the aftermath of Forever Red, many questions are left unanswered and many more arise. Enemies become allies and allies become enemies as Earth faces it's greatest crisis yet.
1. Prolouge

**Disclaimer: If I owned Power Rangers, you would have seen this on TV.**

**A/N: This is just the prologue, I don't plan to really put any work into this story until I'm done with my current project. I just felt inclined to type this us to see if there's any interest in it. Setting is sometime after PriS.  
**

* * *

"You have twelve unheard messages."

With an aggravated grunt, he pushed a button on his cell phone, and they all began to play.

"Hey! It's Rocky, haven't heard from you in awhile, just making sure everything's alright. Give us a call sometime, later!"

_Are you out of the loop or something?_

"Hey, it's Kim! But you can tell that, right? We're all wondering where you are, still. I hope you're doing alright. Call us sometime."

_We went over this._

"Hey, it's Adam. Hope everything's alright."

_Always so quiet..._

"Yo! It's the Zack-man! Hey, I did it, man, finally! Trini and I are getting married! Yo, where ARE you!? You gotta be back in town for the wedding, whenever we plan it! I hope everything's alright, we're all super worried about you. Call me sometime!"

_Always talking..._

"Kim again! Zack and Trini are getting married! You got to come back! Call sometime! Please!!!"

_Always got to be the one that tells me everything..._

"Hi, it's Kat! How long has it been since we last talked? A few years at least! I had to get your number from Kimberly. Did you even know I was back in the States? Call me and let's catch up sometime!"

_Back in the States? Really? That's cool._

"Hey there, stranger! It's me, Trini! You DO remember me right? I wouldn't be surprised if you didn't! It's been so long since anyone heard from you. Zack proposed, and we're getting married! You've just got to be there, it just wouldn't be right if you weren't. Please call us back!"

_Tempting._

"Kim again...I'm so worried about you. We don't have to talk long, just a little bit. I want to know you're alright. My life just isn't complete without you here."

_Does your husband know that?_

"Hey, it's Tanya! What have you been up to!? It's been so many years, I STILL can't believe you missed Adam and I's wedding! Actually, did you even know we got engaged? Look, I know you think you aren't needed here anymore, but you are. Even if it's just a call every now and then. Kim talks about you every day. Please call sometime."

_Whoa, Adam and Tanya got married?_

"It's me, Kim, again. Why don't you talk to us anymore? Do you think we don't need you? You're a part of my life I can't live without, and I'm finding that out the hard way right now! Call me, talk to me! Please! I still need you!"

_That's not the impression I got._

"Kimberly again. I keep expecting you to answer and everything's just going to be normal again, but it isn't, is it? We need you, still. I don't understand why you're avoiding us. We don't even know where you are. Please call me...please..."

_I'm not avoiding you. I'm moving on. You should, too._

"Jason. It's Tommy. We have an emergency. We need you back here. Now."

_...What?_

"End of messages."

Jason frowned, closing his cell phone. That sounded urgent. Tommy was the one who respected his privacy, too. It couldn't be a trick to get him back into town...could it? Jason looked around. He was at the Kentucky welcome center. He had been planning to go to New York to see if he could find steady work there, but he doubted he would. Seattle, Denver, Dallas, Chicago, Orlando, Atlanta...it had all been the same. He stayed a few weeks, but then he packed up his stuff and moved on. As much as he hated to admit it, he was becoming a real vagabond. But now...something wasn't right, he could just feel it. A cold shiver went down his spine. Jason nodded to himself, maybe it was time to go home. He climbed back on his motorcycle, starting it up. He couldn't help but laugh. He was going back to the one place he never thought he'd return to...


	2. Kim Reflects

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: Free time, decided to put a little more into this story, despite the fact that I said I wasn't going to touch this until I finished my other one. This chapter is really just more back story.  
**

* * *

Kimberly Ann Hart Maddox hung up her cell phone with a sigh. She had just woken up, and made the usual morning phone call to her best friend, received no answer, and left a pleading message for a return call. She looked over next to her, seeing that her husband was already gone. Well, he had work, and she was in between jobs, which reminded her that she needed to do some more job hunting today. She just sat in bed for a few minutes before throwing her phone across the room. If nothing else, maybe he would call, and that would sure get her out of bed. After a few more silent minutes, she finally crawled out of bed, recovered her cell phone, and went to make herself some breakfast. 

As she opened the fridge, she found her thoughts drifting to her past, once again. She needed to leave it at just that, the past. Everything had ended up working itself out just fine. Well, almost fine. She had managed to recover her friendship with Tommy, only to lose the one with Jason it seemed. _Hmph. Irony._ She thought to herself as she pulled some milk out of the fridge. _This is all Trey's fault._ She blinked at that realization. Every morning it was someone else's fault, but this was the first time she had blamed the king of Triforia for this whole mess. Trey had given Jason his powers temporarily while he had gone home to heal himself, but the Gold Ranger powers weren't meant to be used by the human body, and as a result they had wrecked havoc on Jason and nearly killed him. That was the reason she had come back to Angel Grove, and had brought her boyfriend Andrew with her. Andrew was the same man from the infamous letter she had sent to Tommy. She hated that she had sent that letter, and to this day wasn't really sure what brought her to do it. She had been scared to return to Angel Grove, as Jason and Kat were the only two she still talked to, and Andrew insisted on coming along as well. Besides, Jason wanted to meet Andrew and Kim wanted to meet Emily. Jason didn't really do much while they were there besides sleep and save the world, while teaching the occasional karate class in between. Kim had taken the time to talk with Tommy, and after several heated conversations, they were able to work out everything and become friends once more. Rocky, Adam, and Kat had been so excited to see her again, and Tanya was thrilled to meet another of the original Rangers. Eventually, Trey's powers had been returned to him and Jason had returned to normal, much to Kim's relief. In celebration, the two of them had gone scuba diving. That just brought across a new set of problems, and it all happened at Muranthias.

_Muranthias_. Kimberly shuddered as she remembered that island. She had been held prisoner, twisted into an evil demon, and attacked her Ranger friends. The Rangers had managed to rescue them, but for once that was only the start of the problems. Upon returning home after three days, Andrew and Emily had both been furious, demanding to know just where the hell the two of them had been with each other after all this time. The two of them didn't have an answer, they hadn't even thought of an explanation yet. Big mistake. A mistake that had led to two very messy breakups, and Andrew and Emily ended up leaving Angel Grove together. _More Irony._ Kim thought as she sat down, now with a full bowl of cereal. Things calmed down somewhat after that. Jason and an old friend of the Rangers', Nate, opened up a small dojo while Kimberly returned to Florida for the Pan Globals. She did alright in them, not getting a medal, but still getting a respectable rank. Having had her fun, she moved back to Angel Grove, where she began teaching gymnastics. Meanwhile, the Rangers had passed on their powers, and moved on to college. Kimberly always assumed she would end up in college, too, but had decided she was happy enough where she was. Surprising her more, Zack and Trini finally returned home as well. Everything was going great, until Angel Grove was attacked by possibly the strongest threat it ever faced. It was an invasion by the United Alliance of Evil, and this time the Power Rangers weren't enough. It had taken all the citizens of Angel Grove banded together to fight off these invaders. Kimberly remembered that battle quite well, it was her final fight. While the battle had been won, there was one major casualty that shocked everyone who was and once was a Ranger. Zordon.

The mentor of the Power Rangers had given his own life in order to destroy all the forces of evil in the universe, a sacrifice fitting for his character. Kimberly was shocked that a power like that had been in that energy tube all that time, but finally understood why Tommy as the Evil Green Ranger had followed strict orders from Rita to cut the link to Zordon through the Command Center's controls instead of just obliterating the tube he was in. Still, the loss of Zordon haunted the entire team. Everyone who was ever a Ranger attended a small funeral held for him and Alpha 5 at the ruins of the Command Center. Alpha was never confirmed destroyed, but after being so close to so many battles, and having heard nothing from him, it was safe to assume the worst. Kimberly choked back her tears as she finished her cereal. Zordon and Alpha deserved so much better than to meet their ends like that. She just wished she had been able to do more than help fight off a bunch of soldiers. Kimberly had been extremely close to the two of them, possibly closer than the rest of the Rangers. She enjoyed coming to the Command Center and helping Alpha with his crazy desires to learn more about human lifestyle, and Zordon always enjoyed watching their antics. She found herself slipping into a depression when she met the man who changed everything, Kyle Maddox.

Kyle was new in Angel Grove, having run away from family problems all the way over in New Jersey. He was looking to start over, and met Kimberly. He was involved in the military, too, specifically the branch that dealt with the Power Rangers, usually the Lightspeed Rescue team, but there were connections with a few others as well. The two of them became very close in a short time, and were dating before she knew what had happened. Kyle mixed in with the group almost perfectly, except for one person. Jason and Kyle never got along, and no one else could understand why. They were both two very likable people, but for some reason they just couldn't agree on anything. That's what drove Jason and Kimberly apart. She hated to do it, but she had to chose a side, and she chose love. She still didn't regret it, but she just wished there had been some other way. Even still, nothing major had happened, until that one fateful night. Kimberly and Kyle had a terrible fight, and she was in her apartment crying her eyes out when Jason had come over. Jason didn't know about the fight, and Kimberly didn't want anything to do with him at that point, and screamed for him to get out. Jason kept trying to talk to her, but Kimberly eventually threated to call the cops, and Jason left. After half an hour, Kimberly calmed down, and realized what an idiot she had been. She tried to call Jason, but there was no answer. She tried again and again but he never answered his phone. The next day, Zack called her and told her the news. Nate had been murdered, and membership had all but completely dropped from the dojo, forcing it out of business. Jason, unable to take it, had packed what little he had left after paying off all the debts and left Angel Grove for good earlier that morning. Kimberly was in shock. The very last thing she had said to him had been a threat. More attempted calls, but Jason never answered. Not when Adam and Tanya got married, not when she and Kyle got married, and now it was Zack and Trini's turn. Still no answer.

Finished with her cereal, Kimberly cleaned out the bowl and put it in the dishwasher. She was tired of living in the past, but she couldn't help but wonder how different things could have been. _If only everything had worked out_. She was finally shaken from her thoughts when the phone rang, checking the caller ID she saw that it was her good friend Aisha Campbell. Aisha had recently returned from Africa and when reunited with her childhood friend, Rocky DeSantos, the two had fallen in love almost instantly. Kimberly laughed at that thought as she answered the phone to talk with her friend.

* * *

Jason cut the ignition to his bike as he arrived at his destination. Tommy had called him a second time to give him the location he was needed at, but he hadn't answered. He wasn't there either. The former Ranger had arrived at the ruins of the Command Center. It was still a massive pile of debris, obviously there had been no effort to clean it up. Jason closed his eyes as he stood in what was left of his home away from home. He hated that it had been destroyed. The Power Chamber just wasn't the same, and even that had been destroyed. He thought about all the time that had been spent here, and wished those old days would return. Being a Power Ranger had been his life, and he was the one that had the hardest time moving on afterwards. 

Then it happened. Jason opened his eyes as a cold feeling covered his body. He couldn't believe it...but at the same time, he could. He wasn't alone in the ruins anymore. There was someone else with him. Whether it was real or not was up for speculation, but the identity of this person wasn't. The former Ranger didn't even turn around to greet the newest arrival, he just quietly uttered one simple word to acknowledge his presence.

"Zordon."

* * *

**A/N: I'm starting to enjoy writing cliffhangers. Answers and more in the next chapter! Please review!**


	3. Old Friends

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers**

**A/N: Well, I completely forgot that Zack's last name is also Taylor, thank you to everyone who reminded me that. I originally planned to leave it as it was anyway, but the more I thought about it, the more it bothered me. So, Kyle and Kimberly's last name is officially changed from Taylor to Maddox, and the past chapter has been fixed to show that. Anyways, here's the next chapter. Thanks to those of you who reviewed!  
**

* * *

Jason didn't turn around, and he wasn't sure why. Instead he dropped to a kneel, picking up a random piece of metal that had clearly once been a part of the many consoles that once filled the Command Center, and looked it over as he waited in silence. 

"So." Zordon's voice came from behind him, although it was obviously so much more human now, not echoing throughout the Command Center. "You came back."

"Yea..." Jason slowly said, taking in this moment still, and questioning again why he came back. But if anyone could tell him, it was Zordon.

"Everyone is doing quite well these days." Zordon said after a bit of silence. Jason raised an eyebrow at that. "Zack and Trini getting married surprised me. Billy seemed more likely. Kimberly and Tommy separating was always a shock, too, but I assumed they would get back together sometime down the road."

"Life's just full of surprises." Jason halfheartedly answered.

"The Rangers have almost entirely moved on. Settled back into society as I hoped. Almost." Zordon finished up, and silence filled the ruins for a bit longer.

"Almost." Jason repeated as he tossed the piece of metal he had been playing with to the ground.

"Did you find what you were looking for?" Zordon asked.

"What?" Jason answered, unsure what his mentor was talking about.

"A new beginning. You wanted to find your place. Even the dojo with Nate wasn't enough for you. You missed the old days, you wanted more." Zordon said.

Jason smiled at how Zordon always seemed to know what was going on. "Too late, now." he answered simply.

"Jason, everything is about to change."

"Everything has changed!" Jason yelled before he could stop himself. "Everything..."

"But not everything has to." Zordon spoke slowly, as a red ball of energy began to form in Jason's hands.

Jason blinked, looking down at the ball, and suddenly it turned into his old morpher. He stared at it in awe before he finally found his voice again. "But...the morphing grid..."

"This is all that is left of the morphing grid. I entrust its power to you, the first Red Ranger, and the first leader. Jason, you will find your place. Your friends need you, and you must go to them."

Jason continued to stare at the morpher silently, listening to Zordon's voice.

"I leave everything to you, Red Ranger." Zordon finished.

Jason didn't like the sound of that. "WAIT!" he yelled out, standing up and spinning around to see no one there. Was he crazy? He looked down at the old morpher in his hand. _Maybe not...  
_

* * *

Kyle Maddox and Tommy Oliver walked down the halls of the military complex they were stationed at, in the middle of one of their famous heated arguments. They really got along fine, but when their career paths crossed Tommy had to keep reminding himself that the guy was Kimberly's husband. Sometimes that was all that kept him from killing the bastard. 

"If this mission screws up we're in big trouble. You understand that, right?" Kyle was ranting, clearly unhappy with the situation.

"Look, if this mission doesn't happen we're in big trouble. You understand that, right?" Tommy shot back at him.

Kyle rolled his eyes in frustration. "Have you even heard from Jason? I hope you aren't depending on him for this, because no one knows where the hell he is."

"No, I haven't. And I'm not depending on him either. Just relax, Kyle, this isn't the first time I've done something this serious." Tommy replied, equally frustrated.

"Fine, just make sure it gets destroyed. Understand?" Kyle finished as they both stopped in the hall.

"It will be. Everything is going to be great. Alright? Just. Great." Tommy put a big fake smile on his face, causing Kyle to turn and walk back down the hall. Tommy turned around headed right out the door, heading to the next place he was needed.

As he walked, Tommy could feel the anger burning within him. He was tired of taking orders. He missed the old way things worked. If there was a problem, the Rangers were dispatched to deal with things, and they dealt with them. Now there was a whole political scene behind it all, and it just made him sick. That was the reason he now had one of the strangest teams ever assembled. With a sigh, he turned into the hangar, and everyone already in there turned and looked right at him. Tommy just gave them a small smile and a nod as he walked over to them. It was obvious he had entered with perfect timing.

"Who's that?" asked the one man he didn't recognize. Tommy looked him over as he closed in, realizing this was Cole, the newest Red Ranger.

"That's Tommy!" T.J., the man who had replaced Tommy as the Red Turbo Ranger told him. "The Red Zeo Power Ranger! He's a legend!" Tommy kind of liked the idea of being a legend. He didn't know his name had been passed down through the Rangers.

"Thank you guys for coming on short notice." Tommy said, not even attempting to sound formal. He was always formal, whether it was with school, his project with Anton Mercer, or this government Ranger business. But now he was among fellow Rangers, and he could be a bit more real.

"So what's going on? The call sounded urgent." Wesley Collins, the Red Time Force Ranger asked as Andros, the Red Space Ranger, stepped up next to Tommy.

"I was hoping this day would never come." Tommy began explaining the situation. "Andros has recently tracked down the remains of the evil Machine Empire."

"But I thought the Zeo Rangers destroyed them years ago." T.J. said as he stepped forwards. Tommy suddenly remembered how eager he always was to show off his vast knowledge of Ranger history. Now wasn't the time, though.

"We destroyed their leaders." Tommy continued, unsure how to word this. "But some of their generals managed to survive." Tommy turned and began to walk alongside the men, pausing for a second. "They've been hiding all these years. They've finally regrouped their forces and are massing on the moon. Preparing...to invade earth." Tommy turned and looked at them as he finished, cursing himself for pausing like that. It made him sound way too dramatic.

"The moon?" Cole asked, stepping forwards. "So...how are we supposed to get there to stop them?" Cole asked, looking at Tommy with a look he found slightly insulting.

"In this." Andros suddenly said, raising up his hand with a remote in it. He pushed a button, and suddenly a giant spaceship no one had noticed lit up and came to life. "I present the Astro Megaship Mark II. Fresh of the construction yards of KO-35, the fastest spaceship in the galaxy."

Tommy ignored that smug smile on Andros's face, and turned back to the Red Rangers. He was about ask a question he knew they would all find insulting. After all, they were all Red Rangers, and they lived for action like this, but Kyle and his damn liability issues...

"Guys." Tommy said to get their attention, and they all turned to him. "This is going to be a very dangerous mission, but I can't force you to go. This is a decision you have to make on your own."

"I don't know much about spaceships, or this Machine Empire. But I will go where ever I must to protect the Earth." Cole said boldly as he stepped forward, and Tommy had to grin. _Well, he's got heart._

"Same goes for us." Wes said as he stood next to Eric, the Quantum Ranger.

"Count me in." Carter, the Red Lightspeed Ranger added on, looking right at Tommy. He knew exactly what this was all about. After all, his branch of Power Rangers had to deal with all kinds of bureaucracy like this.

"It's not even a question." T.J. coolly added on, getting another smile from Tommy.

"Then it's settled." Andros said as he stood next to the man who once served as his Blue Ranger. He didn't have to voice his consent because Kyle already had it in writing.

Tommy had to smile once again. It was still just like old times. "Let's do it." he said, and the Rangers all headed towards the Astro Megaship.

"Oh, wait. Wasn't there another Red Ranger here on earth?" Andros suddenly asked, and everyone stopped. Tommy took a few more steps before he stopped too. He had really hoped no one would mention that. He had called the first Red Ranger twice, before realizing that those powers were obsolete now. Besides, he was long gone and had no intentions on ever coming back.

"I was hoping he'd show up." Tommy bitterly said. He couldn't help but be disappointed. His best friend had truly changed. Protecting the earth always took priority to him, and he would always be there at the scene of the battle, even if he didn't have powers. The fact that he was a no show really bugged Tommy, and as he turned to face the team he didn't bother to hide the disappointment from his face or voice. "But I guess he couldn't make it. We'll have to go on without him."

An small silence fell over the team, and they heard the roar of a motorcycle in the distance. "Guys!" Cole yelled, suddenly very excited as he turned and bolted out of the hangar, with the other Rangers right behind him. They unintentionally formed a straight line, side by side as they looked at the approaching figure.

Tommy squinted as he watched the motorcycle get closer to them. There were only two other inactive Red Rangers, and one was still recovering from a back injury. Then again, the other one had written himself out of their lives. Mixed feelings rushed through Tommy as he watched the motorcycle come to a stop, and the man on it climbed off, turning his back to them. He slowly pulled off his helmet, and turned to face the team with a big grin on his face. Tommy grinned as he saw his best friend once more, and gave a small nod. "Jason."

Jason tried so hard to keep a straight face on. It made him look like the old, experienced veteran who knew everything. But that smile just slipped through as he spoke. "You guys weren't gonna do this without me, were ya?"

With a big grin he looked over the team, and eyed out Cole first thing. He didn't recognize the guy, so he knew instantly he was the rookie. He walked over to him and looked him over. "You must be the new guy." he said, still smiling.

Cole was freaking out. He knew exactly who Jason was, and never dreamed he would meet the first Red Ranger. He quickly wiped the sweat off his hand, and held it out to his predecessor. "Hi. I'm Cole!"

Jason simply patted him on the arm. He was the hazer of the group, always making the rookies earn their place. "Good." he said, as he started walking down the line, looking over all the Rangers. "I recognize...some of you guys. Some of you more than others." he added that last part on with a smile as he looked to Wes and Eric, who smiled. Every single Power Ranger knew that old joke. The largest security breach in Power Ranger history had been when the Space Rangers, minus Andros, had morphed in front of the world. T.J. never heard the end of it for doing so, and Andros never heard the end of it for letting it happen.

"I was starting to wonder whether you'd show up at all." Tommy said as Jason stopped next to him, trying to sound offended, but it had been several years since either of them had seen each other. They couldn't help but smile.

"You didn't think I was going to let you do this without the original Red Ranger, did you?" Jason replied.

_You clever son of a bitch!_ Tommy was grinning from ear to ear, he loved it. He got the message. Somehow, someway, Jason had his original powers once again. He would have to get the details later, but now it was just great to have him aboard. The two men did their traditional handshake, and Tommy just nodded. "Then let's get to it. Operation Forever Red is officially underway."

* * *

**A/N: Really struggled with this chapter for some reason. Hope it's passable. This story is probably going on a hiatus for a little bit, I want to focus a little more on my other one and get some more ideas in my head for this one.**


	4. Uncertain Future

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: So after thinking about it a lot, I finally know where this story is headed, and its a completely different direction that I originally had planned. Updates will be pretty scarce still, but it's finally going to start getting somewhere. I know I keep trying to put this fic on hiatus and fail, I just can't stay away from it. However, this is very IMPORTANT to note, this story is now an M Rating. And it's M for a reason. Language, violence, and graphic content. Oh, and character deaths. Not saying who, but NO ONE is safe. You've been warned. And it's all going to start within the next couple chapters.  
**

* * *

Kyle sat at his desk, burning with frustration. He was in the process of debriefing all the Rangers from the mission to the moon, and he had just made discovery that set him back quite a bit. He had listed all the Rangers as Red Rangers in the paperwork without asking them, since it was Operation Forever _Red. _Not to mention Tommy specifically said he was going to recruit a team of nothing but Red Rangers. However, he had just been informed by Eric Myers that he was not technically a Red Ranger, but instead was the Quantum Ranger. Kyle hadn't even asked, it just slipped out of Eric's mouth during the debriefing. Eric had been the second to last of the Rangers, so now Kyle would have to contact each individual member of the strike team on his own time and verify that they were actually Red Rangers and not some other stupid color. He wondered for a second why Tommy would throw in someone with such a random color, and then figured he'd done it just to piss him off. Well, it had worked. _One more Ranger...then I'm going home._ Kyle smiled at that thought. He was ready to be out of here and see his wife. He didn't look up when the last Ranger entered the room. 

"Ranger color and team," Kyle asked shortly while pulling out one last form, preparing to jot down the info.

"Color? I thought this was Forever _Red_," the last Ranger asked with a hint of amusement in his voice.

"Listen. Just answer the question and..." Kyle looked up while he was speaking and saw just who this last man was. "Jason."

"Jason." the original Red Ranger confirmed, just in case he needed it.

Kyle put the cap back on his pen and set it on the desk. He then leaned back in his chair, studying Jason for a moment. This one was going to be off the record.

"You know I didn't think you would show up." Kyle said. "I figured you were gone forever. Imagine my surprise when Tommy gives me the list of men he was recruiting for the mission, and right there at the top it says 'Jason Lee Scott.' If that wasn't enough of a surprise, you actually came back."

"So, how did you get such an important assignment? When I heard you worked with the military and Power Rangers I figured you were one of those random guys that sits at the computers and just kind of...looks busy. You know, for the image and all." Jason replied, however he had no desire to go through one of his standard arguments with Kyle.

"Well I think the usual debriefing is unnecessary with you, Jason. Everything is in order. Dismissed." Kyle said, not in the mood either, but watching as Jason turned without a word and headed to the door. "So, you're leaving?" Kyle suddenly asked, causing Jason to stop.

"Yea." Jason replied, not turning back around. Silence filled the room for a few short moments.

"Call Kimberly." Kyle said suddenly, watching Jason for some sort of reaction, but he didn't move at all. "She misses you. God knows why, but she does. You don't mean anything to me, but you do to her. And she means everything to me. So call her. Talk to her. Just for a bit. Please."

Without a word, Jason opened the door and walked out, closing it gently behind him.

* * *

"_That's not Serpentera."_

Those three words kept echoing in Tommy's head ever since Jason had turned to him and said them shortly after the Zord had lifted off, revealing its true size and form.

_What the hell was that thing, then? Are there more? Could there be a whole fleet we don't know about? Do we need to go back and investigate further? Where the hell is the real Serpentera?_

Tommy shuddered. Serpentera leading a fleet of mini-Serpenteras into battle wasn't a pleasant thought at all. The fact that there could be more Machine Empire generals in hiding scared him more. Besides, Zordon's energy wave obviously hadn't eliminated all forms of evil. Leo, Carter, and Wes had all told them their own tales of battle. Serpentera was out there, and as long as it was functional, it was a threat to the universe. Tommy sighed. He still hadn't told Kyle either. Kyle would freak out, and then have to report it to his superiors, who would in turn freak out as well. This sucked.

"Hey, bro." Jason's voice shook Tommy from his thoughts as his best friend stepped up next to him.

"Hey." Tommy answered quietly.

"You alright?" Jason asked, looking over to him. They were standing outside the NASADA headquarters, not exactly the best place to just stand and chill. Jason had a good idea what was on his mind, though.

"I should be asking you that, you know?" Tommy said, changing the subject as he once again realized Jason was back. "Where the hell have you been?"

Jason just laughed. "Oh, you know. Around. Did a nice little tour of the country. It was kind of fun."

"Nomad." Tommy said while holding in a laugh. "So where are you going now?"

"I don't know. I'm just lost, bro." Jason admitted, looking at the ground. "I don't know where I belong. It's not here, it's not anywhere."

"Have you talked to Kim?" Tommy asked, and noticed as Jason's mood instantly soured.

"No." Jason answered shortly.

"Just let it go." Tommy said as he turned to face his friend, his brother almost. He hated that two people so close to him had been torn apart like this.

"No, you let it go!" Jason snapped, turning to face Tommy as well.

Tommy just shook his head. "At least stay in town for a little bit, alright? Just think about it some."

"I want to keep moving on. I need to find some kind of work to get me going a bit longer." Jason answered while shaking his head.

"I can help you." Kyle said, stepping up next to the two of them, briefcase in hand. He was obviously on his way home.

"Mind your own business." Jason answered shortly, in no mood to deal with him.

"Come on, Jason, hear him out. What can you do Kyle?" Tommy asked.

"We have a mission lined up that goes to Aquitar." Kyle said, causing Tommy and Jason's eyebrows to raise a little with interest. "There's an artifact that needs to be recovered there. Should be an easy assignment and you get paid by the government. There's the space travel thing, but it shouldn't be too much for a Power Ranger."

"What kind of artifact?" Jason answered with interest. A job where he could use his powers was right up his alley. If it was something that could ensure the safety of the world...well that was even better.

Kyle just laughed and patted him on the arm with his free hand. "Stop by my office tomorrow morning." he answered with a laugh and walked past the two of them. He was off the clock, business could wait until tomorrow.

Jason grunted and looked to Tommy, who was grinning from ear to ear. "What?" the first Red Ranger asked.

"It's perfect. I'll tell Andros to stay on earth an extra night and he can give you a lift there. And Billy! You can see Billy again and catch up." Tommy explained.

"I never said I would take the job." Jason replied, although it sounded pretty good. Going exploring with Ranger powers and catching up with an old friend? At the government's expense? Too good to be true.

"Yea, alright. Come on, you can stay at my place tonight. I won't tell anyone you're back. Deal?" Tommy responded.

"...Yea, alright. Deal." Jason answered with a sigh.

* * *

Kyle walked in his front door and dropped his briefcase with a huge sigh. What a long day. He kicked his shoes off and dragged himself over to the couch. He didn't even attempt to sit down on it, he just fell right onto it. It felt really good. 

"Sweetie?" Kimberly's voice came from the other room, and she walked in, spotting Kyle. "Well, hey there." she said with a laugh, sitting down on the couch by his stomach, making room for herself.

"Hey, baby." Kyle said sleepily.

Kimberly smiled and ran her hand through his hair. "How was work?" she asked.

"If I told you I'd have to kill you." Kyle grunted with a smile, causing Kimberly to laugh.

"Alright, Mr. Top Secret Hot Shot. So you going to lie here all night?" she asked.

"If you'll let me." Kyle mumbled as he adjusted, trying to get himself comfortable. "So what's for dinner, Mrs. Top Secret Hot Shot?"

"Oh, I don't know. I don't feel like cooking. What if one of us just goes through a drive through?" Kimberly responded.

"Not it." Kyle sleepily mumbled.

_Damn!_ Kimberly thought to herself. Playground rules were very much the ultimate authority in this household. A call on "not it" was the ultimate method they used to determine things. "Alright. Get some rest, honey." Kimberly said as she got up, kissing him on the forehead. Kyle just smiled as she left the room.

* * *

**A/N: Pretty short, I know. So will Jason and Kimberly end up talking things out? What's this mission Kyle has lined up? Find out next time...**


	5. Small World

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers. **

**A/N: Quick update because last chapter was pretty short, and the idea for this chapter just came right to me. This is an M Rated fic now, last reminder, and that takes effect now.  
**

* * *

_The pain...the pain is too much. I can't move. I'm strapped to some sort of...table. An operating table? What's happening? _

_I can't feel my arms or my legs. Is it numb from the pain? The struggle to get me here? No...they aren't there anymore. They've been removed. Cut clear off. I'm lying in my own blood on this table._

_I don't want to be your guinea pig. Just stop. STOP!_

"_Begin the process," I hear one of the 'scientists' say._

"_Implanting cybernetic limbs now," a second one says._

"_We will create the ultimate warrior," a third one is saying. Or maybe its the first? I can't tell anymore. I just want the pain to stop._

_Suddenly I feel four cold, metallic limbs implanting themselves where my arms and legs used to be. They're turning me into some kind of...cyborg! Why!? It hurts so much!_

"_Process complete," one of them says. I barely hear it. I just want to die..._

"_Alright. Next step. Get the cybernetic eyes ready. Hold his head. He won't like this very much." another says as cruel laughter fills the room. One of them grabs my head. I can't move. Another moves in with a scalpel..._

_NO!_

"NO!!!" the Phantom Ranger snapped awake in his bed, sitting straight up. He looked around, breathing deeply as he touched his robotic eyes with his steel fingers. Breath...it wasn't as necessary for him anymore. Sure he did it every once in awhile, but usually the respirator implanted in his chest took care of those things. He sighed with relief as he realized he hadn't actually made it to that part of the nightmare. He was always reliving that horrid event in his sleep. He looked down at himself, and was disgusted. There was barely any visible flesh left on him after that day. He got up and began to put his usual Ranger armor on when there was a knock at his door, and it opened without him answering at all.

Trey, the king of Triforia, stepped into the room, looking at the Phantom. "You alright?"

"Another nightmare," the cyborg answered as he put his helmet on, now in his full gear.

"The servants heard you screaming in your sleep," Trey said with worry in his voice.

"Sorry," the Phantom Ranger responded. He really did feel bad. Trey had been the one to rescue him from those labs. He had stayed on Triforia for a bit afterwards, then moved on to Eltar, and then to Earth. And now he was back on Triforia, doing whatever he could to help the king who had rescued him. Usually it was just standard police work, but there was the occasional serious event that called him to a real battle. Nothing really exciting, though.

"Don't worry about it. But I think you should take a day off, get some more rest." Trey suggested, worried about the Phantom.

"If I rest, I relive that day. No thanks. I'll be fine." the Phantom Ranger responded, pulling his weapons off the shelf.

"Well at least go slow today. I'm getting worried about you." Trey said with a sigh.

"Alright. Just today, though," the cyborg replied with a smile hidden behind his mask. Without another word he walked out the door, eager to do anything that would get his mind off his nightmares.

Trey just sighed and left the room, closing the door behind him.

* * *

Kyle got to his office at eight o'clock the next morning. To his surprise, Jason was leaning against the wall next to his door, arms crossed and waiting patiently. "I take it you're interested?" Kyle asked as he unlocked the door and walked in. 

"A little bit," Jason answered, uncrossing his arms and walking in after him. He eyed two chairs in front of Kyle's desk, and sat down in the left one.

"Alright. The assignment's really simple," Kyle began, getting right to business. The less small talk between him and Jason, the less chance they'd get into an argument over something really trivial like usual. "I need you to go to the planet Aquitar and recover the Crystal of Darkness."

"What's the Crystal of Darkness?" Jason asked with interest. Something like that sounded pretty dangerous. He'd be more comfortable with it destroyed. Then again, it was on Aquitar, so it should be pretty secure to begin with.

"It's a small crystal, a little bit bigger than your fist. It glows naturally with a really dark aura, and is a source of great power," Kyle explained, looking to see if Jason had another question, but when the Red Ranger just nodded he continued. "It's resting in an unsecured cave deep underground on Aquitar. If we get a hold of this crystal, it serves two purposes. First, if there's anymore remnants of the Machine Empire or other factions of the United Alliance of Evil, they won't be able to get to it. Secondly, we at NASADA would like to study it and possibly replicate its power. Without that darkness side effect, of course."

Jason though about this one carefully. Something like that couldn't fall into the hands of evil. Kyle hadn't given him a really detailed description of it, but he had said enough. He was bound by confidentiality most likely. He didn't like the government studying something so dangerous, either, but in all honesty...what were they going to be able to do with it?

"Alright, Kyle. You got a deal," Jason said with a nod.

"Good," Kyle answered. "You can leave whenever, although the sooner the better. I think Andros is leaving soon?"

"Yea, I'll catch a ride with him. Thanks," Jason replied and shook hands with Kyle, something he had only done one other time, when he and Kyle first met.

Just then, Tommy walked in the door, and sat down in the chair next to Jason, looking obviously upset.

"What's wrong?" Kyle asked, confused by Tommy just barging in like that all of a sudden. Jason leaned back in his chair and looked to Tommy.

"It wasn't Serpentera," Tommy said, shaking his head. "It was a decoy. Or worse, a fighter ship. Whatever it was, it wasn't what we were looking for."

"What?! How? When did it leave the moon? Are you sure? It might just be old and falling apart. Are you positive?" Kyle was instantly in a panic. This was really bad.

"Kyle. Cole drove a fucking bike through it," Tommy said, looking him dead in the eyes.

"I wish we had flying bikes back in the day," Jason casually commented in the middle of the silence.

"Dismissed, Scott!" Kyle snapped, and Jason got up with a laugh, patting Tommy on the shoulder as he left the room.

"So then where's the real one? The real Serpentera?" Kyle asked as the door closed.

"I don't know. It could still be up there on the moon. It could be across the galaxy. I have no idea. I want to go back up there and see for myself," Tommy answered.

"No. No, absolutely not we don't have the funding to send another mission to the moon. Not now at least," Kyle answered while shaking his head.

"Kyle, there could be a hundred more of those little bastards up there! Along with the big bastard!" Tommy yelled, in disbelief that Kyle was denying this mission.

"Alright, let's calm down," Kyle said. "I'll have some sources check all data on the moon. Maybe we can find a departure date or something. Sound good?"

"Fine. But I want this whole mess dealt with quickly. This isn't my career. I want this to be done with so I can move on," Tommy answered.

"And it will be. You're done here for the day. I'll call you tomorrow, sometime," Kyle replied.

Tommy simply nodded, and got up, leaving the room. With a sigh, Kyle started pulling out his papers and got to work.

* * *

"I just hate that you're leaving. Again," Ashley was saying to her boyfriend as he held her close. The two of them were standing in one of the many NASADA hangars, saying the familiar farewells. 

"This will be short. I promise. I have to drop someone off on Aquitar, and go attend a couple meetings on Eltar. Then I'm coming back for a long time," Andros answered, pulling her as close to him as possible. He hated leaving her behind so much, but he had his own responsibilities.

"It just hurts, being so many worlds away from you. Knowing that if something were to happen to you there's nothing I can do to help you," Ashley mumbled.

"I'm going to be just fine, Ashley. I'm coming back for you," Andros said, and gave her a short kiss before letting go.

Ashley gave a small smile. "I'll be here waiting for you," she said, looking Andros deep in the eyes. A loud voice from the other end of the hangar shook both of them from their trance.

"Ashley Hammond!!!" a voice yelled, causing both of them to turn sideways to the approaching figure.

"Jason!!!" Ashley screamed as loud as she could, and sprinted down the hangar to him, practically diving into his arms for a huge hug. "You came back!!!"

A very confused Andros stepped up next to them, blinking. "You two...know each other?" he asked, looking between them.

"You know Jason?" Ashley asked her boyfriend curiously.

"You know Ashley?" Jason asked Andros, with a hint of protectiveness in his voice.

"...You two know know each other!?" Andros repeated himself, this time louder and with so much more confusion in his voice.

The two of them just laughed as they let go of each other, and Ashley grabbed Jason by the arm, standing beside him. "Can't you see the similarities?" she asked, rewarded only by another blank stare.

"...No, not really," Andros admitted, still confused.

"Jason's my cousin!" Ashley finally yelled out like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Andros blinked and looked between them again, and Ashley continued. "My dad and his mom are siblings! We're related!"

"You're kidding me!" Andros was shocked. "What's it you say here on earth...small world?"

Jason frowned with confusion, looking to Andros, then back to Ashley. "What are you doing here at NASADA? How do you know Andros?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing," Ashley replied. Sure it was great to see her runaway cousin, but what the hell was he going here anyway?

"Wait...you two don't know?" Andros asked suddenly, amusement evident in his voice and eyes.

"Know what?" the cousins asked back, looking to the Red Space Ranger.

Andros suddenly burst out laughing. This was just too ironic. "First Red, allow me to introduce you to Space Yellow." he said with a grin on his face.

Jason and Ashley both spun their heads to look at each other, completely shocked. "You're a Power Ranger!?" they both asked the other at the same time, and fell speechless again.

Ashley found her voice first. "You were the first Red Ranger? You were the one that battled the Evil Green Ranger? The one that lead the very first power team? Wait, is THAT the reason you abandoned me at the mall without a ride all those years ago and never apologized!?"

Jason started laughing. "Well how about you, little Ms. Astronaut? A Space Ranger, huh? How'd you get recruited for that one?"

"Well, I was Yellow Turbo, first. Wait, do you know Tanya? I replaced her." Ashley started drawing the lines back to her roots as a Ranger. This was unbelievable!

"Yea, I know Tanya. I served on the Zeo team alongside her for a bit. I was the Gold Ranger temporarily." Jason explained, thinking this was just as cool, then suddenly he thought back to a certain set of old blurred TV footage that was the talk of the world. "Wait, wait. So you're the Yellow Space Ranger?"

"Yea!" Ashley answered, wondering where he was going with this. Andros sighed, he already knew.

"Yellow 'We-are-the-Power-Rangers' Space Ranger?" Jason asked, about to burst out laughing at this.

Ashley instantly swatted at his arm, and Jason just laughed harder. "Yes! Look, there wasn't any choice, alright! We didn't have time!"

"Right, right. It wasn't like there was an empty office building underneath you or anything," Jason just answered with a laugh.

"Oh, you weren't there! Besides, they never confirmed our identities," Ashley said, crossing her arms.

"I was too there. But I'll let it slide just this once," Jason said with a smile. "So hey, how's Chance doing these days? Any better?"

Ashley smiled a bit. Chance was her older brother, actually he was Jason's age. He had dropped out of college, but recently things started working out better for him. "He's a stunt man, now. Putting that martial arts to good use. And that thing where he likes to jump off stuff. Remember when you and him would go cliff jumping whenever you came over for the summer? And made me go with you that one time?"

Jason smiled. Spending summers at the Hammond house was one his favorite things ever. In his late teen years, once he had his license, he would even go see them for long weekends.

"Well, I hate to cut the reunion short, but I'd like to get moving," Andros interrupted, snapping the two of them back to reality. "You all set, Jason?"

"Yea," Jason answered. "Thanks again for taking me, Andros."

"Hey, not a problem. Rangers gotta look out for each other," Andros answered with a laugh.

"Wait! Jason's the one you're dropping off on Aquitar!? So I have to worry about my boyfriend AND my long lost cousin? Well this sucks. I don't think it could get any worse," Ashley started ranting.

"Sorry I'm late," TJ said as he walked past the three of them with a backpack slung over his shoulder, heading up the ramp and onto the ship.

Ashley was beyond words. She just stood there with her mouth open. Jason suddenly started laughing and walked up the ramp himself, and Andros was left standing there with a sheepish grin.

"It's a Red Ranger thing," he tried to cover, and Ashley frowned. "Alright, so I need to bring second in command along. We'll be back soon. Promise."

Ashley just nodded. "I love you."

"I love you too," Andros said as he kissed his girlfriend goodbye, and turned, walking up the ramp and onto the Astro Megaship himself. Ashley watched silently as all the systems powered up, and the ship lifted off, leaving the hangar and soaring high into the atmosphere.

* * *

Tommy stepped up to the front door of the Maddox house, ringing the doorbell. He had one last thing to do. Something he was really going to catch hell for not doing sooner, but oh well. He had promised. Now that the promise was off though, he had to be true to another close friend. 

Kimberly opened the door with a smile when she saw who it was. "Tommy!" she said, having not seen him in awhile. She stepped forwards and gave him a big hug.

"Hey, Beautiful," Tommy said, causing Kimberly to smile even bigger. He was the only person she allowed to call her that.

"What brings you by here?" she asked as she let him go, noticing the worried look in his eyes suddenly.

"Well...I need to talk to you about someone," Tommy began, looking right at her.

"About who?" Kimberly asked, tilting her head to the side a little bit, frowning. Why was he acting so weird.

Tommy struggled to get the words out, knowing this would make her happy at first, but by the end of the story, she wouldn't be all that thrilled. "About Jason."

Kimberly frowned even more. "What about Jason?" she cautiously asked.

Tommy took a deep breath. "He's back."

* * *

**I threw in the Jas/Ash thing just because, really. If there was ever something in the shows that made it straight up impossible...oh well. It's AU.**


	6. Arrival

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: Here's the next chapter. I'm getting ready to go back to college, so things are probably going to slow down a bit, but nothing too drastic, don't worry! Thanks again for the reviews.  
**

* * *

"What? What do you mean he's back!?" Kimberly began without a beat, cutting Tommy off and ignoring him as he started waving his arms in a 'calm down' motion. "Where is he!?"

"Well...he's gone, now," Tommy said, and saw Kimberly's eyes widen and her mouth open, so he quickly got a last word in. "But he's coming right back!"

Kimberly closed her mouth, thinking about this for a minute. "I don't get it. Where's Jason, Tommy? Just tell me," she finally ordered him, and Tommy looked around a bit uncomfortably. Kimberly got the message. "Oh...come on inside."

The two of them walked into the house and Kimberly closed the door behind them. They made their way into the living room, where Kimberly sat on the couch and Tommy took a chair. Tommy took a deep breath.

"I called Jason back for Operation Forever Red. I was a bit surprised he showed up considering everyone else's luck trying to get a hold of him," Tommy explained the situation from the beginning, and Kimberly just nodded. "Well, I talked him into staying an extra night, because he was more than ready to just ride off into the sunset again. The deal was I couldn't tell anyone he was here. That was the only way he would stay."

"And you let him leave anyway," Kimberly finished for him, but Tommy shook his head.

"No, Kyle gave him a job. Something to make him some money and to make sure he comes right back," Tommy continued. "He's on Aquitar, recovering some artifact."

"Aquitar?" Kimberly asked with sudden interest.

"Right. He's going to run a small errand, see Billy, and just spend some time away," Tommy finished.

"Tommy, he's _been_ spending time away," Kimberly reminded him.

"Well, even more time. Besides, if anyone can talk sense into him, it would be Billy," Tommy reasoned, although he figured that was actually more Kimberly's department. Used to be, at least.

"I want to know as soon as he comes back," Kimberly said, looking Tommy in the eyes.

"You will. I promise," Tommy told her, and she gave him a disbelieving look. "I promised you first, alright? Keep that phone on you."

Kimberly gave a small smile. "Thanks, Tommy," she said.

"Not a problem," Tommy said with a laugh, looking at the table and picking up some random wedding information booklets. "I see you've been busy."

"Are you surprised? Aisha and I are all over this one," Kimberly said with a smile, not bothered by the sudden topic change. She had heard what she needed to hear. "Zack and Trini are coming over in about half an hour. You should stick around. We barely see you anymore, either."

"I know, sorry. Red Ranger thing," Tommy said with a laugh, and even got a chuckle out of Kimberly. "I've just been so busy with this Serpentera thing. It wasn't Serpentera, by the way. It was a smaller decoy. We don't know what's going on."

"Keep me updated, alright?" Kimberly said. The identities of the original Power Rangers were still very well guarded for the most part, they had chosen not to emerge since their powers were the only set still completely obsolete. Tommy was the only one who was a confirmed member of the original team in their books. It wasn't until yesterday that Jason was confirmed as an original as well, but they intended to leave the others out of the spotlight, so Kimberly was informed of everything her husband and his coworkers did through Tommy.

"You got it, Beautiful," Tommy said while flashing a smile. "And yea. I'll stick around. Zack doesn't want to suffer alone. Besides, this way he owes me one later."

"Well I'm glad you men think so highly of all the work we put into these weddings," Kimberly said, picking up some wedding things. "Just for that, I'm going to let you help me get a head start before they get here."

"Wait! No, I was just kidding!" Tommy said, trying to escape, but he already knew he was trapped.

* * *

"Entering Aquitar atmosphere," TJ reported as the Astro Megaship began to shake pretty violently.

"Strap yourselves in," Andros told the two of them, and they did. Andros looked to Jason and laughed. "Ever been to another planet?"

"I was teleported to and from this one planet right before I gave up my powers...but that's it," Jason answered. "Yesterday was my first time in an actual ship."

"Alright, we're in," TJ said, and they all unbuckled now that the rough part was over.

Jason stood up and looked out at the planet through the windows. There wasn't a whole lot to see. It was almost entirely covered in water, but there was the occasional mountain or volcano sticking out, and sometimes even a whole island. Near these were massive buildings built out of the water. Jason watched as TJ brought the ship towards one particularly large building, looking for a landing platform. Suddenly two hovering fighter craft pulled up next to the Megaship, keeping right next to it.

"Unidentified vessel, please stay on course with us until you are cleared," one of the fighter pilots instructed, and TJ piloted the ship to do just that. "State your name, planet of origin, and business here on Aquitar."

Andros blinked. "Wow, they've gotten a lot stricter with who they let in," he commented, and pressed a button to begin a transmission. "This is the Astro Megaship Mark II of KO-35. Location of origin: Earth," he informed them, and let go of the button as Jason stepped up next to him, and stepped back.

Jason just nodded and pushed the button himself, leaning over to talk into the console. "This is Jason Lee Scott of Earth, Red Ranger. I'm here to see Billy Cranston."

Jason leaned back and let go of the button, and the three of them waited in silence for a few minutes.

"Welcome to Aquitar, Jason of Earth," a voice that Jason instantly recognized as Cestro, the Blue Aquitar Ranger finally said. "The pilots will direct you to where you need to land. We'll meet you at the landing bay."

"Good deal," Jason said as he looked to Andros with a smile, while TJ brought the ship in for a landing.

"Well, I guess this is where we part ways," Andros said. "We'll be back in a few days to pick you up. Think that will be enough time?"

"Plenty. Thanks, guys," Jason said as he shook hands with Andros, and then TJ.

"Hey, be careful. No telling whats protecting that crystal," TJ told him.

"Yea, but I bet I can talk the Aquitar Rangers into helping me," Jason reasoned as TJ lowered the ramp. "Take care guys."

They both nodded to him as he walked down the ramp. Jason stepped onto the the platform, walking away from the ship as the ramp closed behind him and the ship lifted off. He stood there for a moment, getting used to this new world. It was similar to Earth, but obviously wasn't the exact same so his body had to make some adjustments. He noticed six Aquitians making their way down the platform towards him. He instantly recognized two of them, Cestro and Corcus, the Blue and Black Aquitar Rangers. He didn't recognize the other four, but when he saw they were wearing uniforms he realized they were just guards.

"You're bringing four guards just to meet one old Ranger?" Jason called out to them with a laugh, and his two fellow Rangers smiled.

"We heard that Tommy and Kimberly had a bad date. Since you weren't there to beat up Tommy, we were worried that you'd make do with us," Cestro said with a laugh as he closed in, shaking hands with Jason. Jason laughed and shook hands with Corcus next.

"Boy, and I thought I was out of the loop," Jason said, and the two Rangers tilted their heads in confusion.

"What?" Corcus asked.

"Tommy and Kimberly broke up! Years ago. Before Billy even moved here," Jason said with a laugh.

"No way," Cestro said, eyes widened.

"Yes way. Kimberly's married to some hotshot military man," Jason reported, rolling his eyes.

"You don't seem to like that," Cestro noted, crossing his arms.

"Not the issue," Jason said waving a dismissive hand. "I'm surprised Billy hasn't told you that, though."

"Billy keeps himself busy as anything these days. He doesn't really talk about life back on earth all that much," Corcus explained, and Jason just nodded.

"Living in the present, sounds just like him," Jason said with a laugh as the group started walking down the ramp towards the building. "So where is old William, anyway? He hasn't been in touch at all, I'm dying to see him."

"He's all the way on the other side of the planet," Cestro reported, shaking his head. "He's busy with another one of his crazy projects, you know how he is. We sent a message out, hopefully he'll receive it and be able to make it over here before you leave."

"So, what exactly are you doing on Aquitar? Just stopping by?" Corcus asked.

"No, I thought they had contacted you about this," Jason said, looking a bit confused, and the two Rangers shook their heads. "I was asked to recover the Crystal of Darkness so that scientists on Earth could study it, as well as secure it so that no evil forces could get a hold of it."

Corcus and Cestro looked to each other for a minute, then back to Jason.

"No, they didn't inform us of this," Cestro told him, while Corcus entered the code to open the doors, and they walked inside. "Don't worry, though. That's probably for the better. Your Earth government keeps a much closer eye on things. We actually removed it from the cavern it was in a few months back, though, so there's no 'mission' to get it, so to speak."

"Really? You don't mind us taking it?" Jason asked, relieved that this wasn't going to cause some sort of planetary feud. That was the last thing he wanted to be the middle man in. "Thanks, guys."

"Not a problem, Jason," Cestro said with a laugh. "Let's head downstairs and get you settled into a room. When are your friends coming back for you?"

"Oh, a couple days. I hate to be a burden, though," Jason said, although he knew there was really nothing he could do about it.

"Nonsense. You're a Power Ranger. You're one of us." Corcus said as they all stepped into the elevator, and Corcus pressed some buttons, and it began to move very quickly downwards.

Jason once again looked to the silent guards. "Seriously, guys. What's up with the little platoon here?" he asked curiously.

"It's a formality. There's been a surge in crime lately, so everyone going somewhere has to be accompanied by some. Even three Rangers," Cestro explained while rolling his eyes, and Jason laughed as the guards even shifted a bit. After a short ride, the doors opened and the group started moving down the hallway.

"So what about you, Jason? What have you been up to these days?" Cestro asked as they moved down this much larger and wider hallway. "Are you a White Ranger now? Or maybe a Blue Ranger?"

"Huh?" Jason asked, and then looked down at his clothes. He had gotten them from Tommy since he was out of clean clothes for himself. He was wearing a pair of blue jeans and a white t-shirt he'd gotten from Tommy, as well as his own leather jacket and old brown boots. "Oh, no. I'm back in my old red powers. Just picked these up from Tommy."

"The old powers?" Cestro asked curiously. "You have the old set back? I thought they were destroyed forever."

"So did I, but you'll never believe this..." Jason trailed off, stopping when he glanced at one of the doors. Right next it it was a panel that caught his interest for some reason. He thought about it for a minute, then realized what it was. It was the same as that thing he'd picked up while speaking to Zordon at the ruins of the Command Center. Jason slowed his pace, and walked over to it. The others stopped too, looking a little concerned.

"What's the matter?" Cestro asked, wondering what Jason was up to.

"What is this?" Jason asked, drawn to it for some reason he couldn't understand.

"It's a telepathic control system. Aquitar uses telepathy pretty frequently," Cestro explained. "That way, only certain people can access certain areas. Very secure."

"For example, that door is set so only those with Ranger powers can open it," Corcus added on, and Cestro spun his head, giving him an almost lethal look.

"So if I just think about it..." Jason said, closing his eyes and concentrating. He heard the door open and smiled. That was cool. As soon as he opened his eyes, though, that smile vanished. Slowly he walked into what appeared to be a giant hangar, eyes widened in horror.

Serpentera. Serpentera and hundreds, no, thousands of smaller versions like they had seen on the moon. They were all here, and there were technicians and mechanics working hard on them. _What!?_

"Blue Aquitar Ranger Power!" Cestro yelled from behind Jason, but Jason didn't notice. He was too busy staring in shock.

"Black Aquitar Ranger Power!" Corcus yelled. This time Jason heard it, and spun around, reaching for his morpher by instinct.

"Don't move!" Cestro yelled, now fully morphed. The four guards had their rifles aimed right at Jason, while the two morphed Alien Rangers had their swords drawn and pointed at him.

"You backstabbing sons of-" Jason yelled, only to be cut off by the Blue Aquitar Ranger.

"Don't move or we'll kill you, too!"

* * *

**A/N: Another cliffhanger. I'm just horrible, aren't I?**


	7. Between Truth and Lies

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: I guess I'm just too nice. Couldn't leave it with that cliffhanger for too long.  
**

* * *

Kimberly smiled, humming to herself as she made dinner. The wedding planning had gone along great, and now she was getting ready for Zack and Trini to come back over and have dinner with her and Kyle. Tommy had been invited, too, but he declined the offer. Kimberly thought back to what he had told her earlier about Jason. He was coming home soon, and she'd finally get to see him.

For the first time, Kimberly suddenly was a little bit afraid of seeing him again. What she wanted was to see her best friend who would be just as happy to see her and everything would go back to normal, like it had been years ago. It just wasn't going to be normal anymore, though. The changes had taken place and people had grown apart because of it. She just hated that it had been the two of them. She suddenly glanced to the side, seeing Kyle walking into the kitchen.

"Hey, baby," Kyle said as he walked over, giving her a kiss and holding her for a minute.

"Hey, honey," Kimberly responded with a smile, gazing into his eyes. She wished she could thank him for giving Jason that job. She knew she couldn't, so she continued to stare into alluring eyes. Suddenly though, her vision began to fade to white, and before she knew it, that was all she could see.

_Not everything is as it seems._

"Zordon?"

"Kimberly! Kimberly!"

Kimberly blinked, opening her eyes. _What the hell was that?_ Looking around, she saw that she was lying on the floor, in Kyle's arms.

"Kimberly are you alright?" Kyle asked, worry filling his voice.

"I'm sorry, I'm fine," Kimberly said with a smile as Kyle helped her to her feet. Her heart was racing though. Had she just heard Zordon's voice?! "It's just been a long day."

"What was that you said?" Kyle asked curiously, not really convinced.

"What? I-I didn't say anything," Kimberly quickly tried to cover.

"You said...Zordon," Kyle said. Tommy had told him the name Zordon, but nothing else. All he knew was that Zordon was connected to the Power Rangers in some way.

"Are you sure I wasn't just mumbling things? Look, I need to finish up making dinner," Kimberly quickly tried to change the subject. However, she wanted to find a way to talk to Zack and Trini about that alone tonight, somehow.

"Why don't I do that? You should go lie down," Kyle said, shaking his head.

"That's a good idea...thanks," Kimberly said with a fast nod, and quickly left the room.

Kyle just stood there, thinking. _Zordon...  
_

* * *

"Knock knock!" Ashley called as she opened the door to her brother's apartment, looking around.

"Ashley?" Chance answered as he walked into the main room, looking at Ashley with a smile. "Aren't you supposed to be off with your boyfriend or something?"

"He had to leave town for a little bit," Ashley answered, taking a seat in one of the chairs. "Figured I'd come bug you instead."

"He's always leaving town. You need to keep a better eye on him, sis," Chance said, taking a seat and turning on the TV. "See if he won't take you with him next time."

"Oh, he never will," Ashley casually responded, looking at the TV. "I ask every time."

Chance shot her a curious glance. "You better watch out, Ash. I don't want you getting hurt," he told her.

"Oh, relax!" Ashley said with a laugh. She couldn't tell her brother any Ranger business at all, obviously, so he was left thinking his sister's boyfriend was one of the most suspicious characters on earth. Little did he know her boyfriend was rarely even on earth. "He's not running around behind my back. Trust me."

"Alright, then," her unconvinced brother answered.

"Hey, by the way. Guess who I ran into this morning?" Ashley said, and immediately caught herself before she finished. Tommy had told her the whole story back at the spaceport, and she obviously couldn't repeat it.

"Who?" Chance asked, not really thinking much about it.

"No one!" Ashley almost screamed with excitement, trying to cover her slip up. Chance just turned and looked at his little sister.

"You're so weird," he said, looking back to the TV, and Ashley just gave an awkward laugh.

* * *

"Tyrannosaurus!"

Jason quickly pulled out his morpher and transformed into the Red Ranger once again, causing the guards to flinch in place, but the Alien Rangers didn't budge. As he finished morphing, he held his hands in front of him and formed his old trusty sword in them. He took a battle ready stance, giving his former friends his attention once more.

"So all this time this is what you've been up to!?" Jason yelled accusingly.

"Drop your weapon, human," Cestro ordered, frustrated by this whole mess.

"Tell me where Billy is. Now," Jason ordered in response, with a lethal edge in his tone.

"I thought I made it clear. He didn't cooperate, we had to kill him. A line you are stretching as well." Cestro answered, growing increasingly angry.

Jason looked around, trying to get a feel for this room. There were catwalks everywhere, and of course the fleet of Zords, but other than that it was actually pretty open. This was going to be tough.

"To think we trusted you," Jason commented bitterly.

"Yes, humans trust all the time, only to be let down again and again. Curious, isn't it?" Cestro said in his mocking tone before getting serious again. "Enough of this! Attack!"

The guards all opened fire on Jason, who swung his sword appropriately to deflect all the laser blasts. He even managed to deflect one of the shots into the chest of one of the guards, killing him instantly. Cestro and Corcus, however, charged forwards at him, so Jason quickly leaped backwards and to the side, continuing to deflect the shots and attempting to redirect more into the guards, or possibly even the Rangers. Cestro quickly made a charge at his new position, so Jason leaped far to the right, surprised at how much faster these powers were than the Aquitar powers. However, as soon as he landed he realized it had been a trap. Corcus was ready for him there, and swung a powerful slash with his sword right across Jason's chest, launching him backwards across the hangar. Ignoring the pain while he slid on his back across the smooth floor, Jason quickly rolled backwards to his feet.

Looking forwards again he saw Corcus moving in very quickly. The Black Aquitar Ranger closed in, stabbing forwards at Jason with a powerful thrust, which Jason sidestepped. Corcus stumbled past him, and Jason jumped up, throwing a hard side kick into his back that threw him forwards. Jason turned, seeing far more guards closing in now, rifles trained on him. He couldn't stop them all. After deflecting the first couple shots Jason knew how overwhelmed he was, and quickly jumped upwards, landing on a catwalk high above the ground.

He took a couple deep breaths, but suddenly looked up to see Cestro running down the catwalk towards him. He stabbed at the Blue Aquitar Ranger with his sword, but his enemy saw it coming. Cestro grabbed his wrist, and redirected the stab straight into the wall. Jason's sword was stuck good, and he tried to pull it out with no real luck. While he was busy with that, Cestro raised his sword and swung it right at the Red Ranger. Jason quickly drew his blade blaster in his other hand, converting it to it's dagger mode and blocking. Cestro swung three more quick strikes, but the Red Ranger blocked every attempt he made. Thinking quickly, Cestro realized he had an advantage with the weight of the weapons. If he did a powerful enough swing, that little dagger wouldn't be able to stop him, especially since Jason was using one hand, not to mention he was putting a lot of effort into removing his sword from the wall. Cestro raised his sword his above his head, leaning back for a powerful strike. Jason didn't even hesitate when the attacks let up, taking that opportunity to convert his blade blaster to it's pistol mode. While Cestro was leaning backwards, Jason fired a shot into his face at point blank. The blast made Cestro drop his sword, and threw the Blue Aquitar Ranger clear off the catwalk and to the floor below.

Jason finally ripped his sword from the wall, and quickly holstered his blade blaster. He picked up Cestro's sword in his other hand, looking down at the guards. A couple were helping Cestro up, and the rest were getting ready to shoot at him now that they didn't have to worry about hitting their commander. As the laser fire came upwards through the catwalk, Jason leaped onto one of the many smaller Serpenteras that was suspended from the ceiling by only three strong cables. Looking to his right, he saw the Black Aquitar Ranger closing in on him once again. Corcus moved in and this time swung at Jason with an overhead slash. Jason crossed his own two swords and caught Corcus's in them. Jason quickly uncrossed the swords, and the action made Corcus stumble backwards just a little bit. Jason delivered a slice with one sword, and then the other. Corcus stumbled backwards, enraged, and swung a powerful slash at the Red Ranger. Jason ducked down and rolled underneath it, causing Corcus to sever one of the cables. As Jason rolled to his feet he threw Cestro's sword in an arc, causing it to spiral through the air. The sword took out the other two cables, and Jason quickly turned around and slashed Corcus in the back before leaping to another hanging mini-Serpentera.

Landing on the next Zord, he looked down to see the other one land on top of most of the guards, killing them instantly. Before he knew it, though, Corcus leaped upwards, landing next to him once more. Cestro landed as well this time, holding a rifle. Cestro began to open fire while Corcus moved in for a close range attack on Jason. Jason deflected two shots, and while he was busy with that Corcus slashed him across the chest and sent him stumbling backwards. Jason recovered and quickly blocked a second slash from Corcus, but this time a shot from Cestro slammed into his side, throwing him sideways. He rolled to a kneel, holding his sword up and blocking another strike from Corcus. He threw a swift punch to the Black Aquitar Ranger's stomach with his free hand and knocked him away. He deflected two more laser shots from Cestro before he realized that he just couldn't compete with both of them at once. He would have to keep separating them. He heard the doors open once again, and realized more guards were probably entering the room. The other guards had been intimidated by him. Thinking quickly, he decided that if he were to leap into the middle of their ranks, he would completely throw them off, and possibly be able to escape into the hallway. All he had to do then was contact Andros and get him back here. He deflected another shot from Cestro, and this one managed to hit the Blue Aquitar Ranger square in the chest, causing him to stumble backwards and drop the rifle. Jason did a back flip off the Zord, but when he looked at where he was landing, he realized what a mistake he had made.

Delphine, the leader of the Aquitian Rangers and the White Ranger of the team, was standing there alone and fully morphed, waiting for him. Jason couldn't do anything as he got closer and closer but hold up his sword, and try to block the attack. Delphine swung her sword as hard as she could as the original Red Ranger closed in on her, and connected hard. Jason was thrown backwards, hitting the ground and dropping his sword. He took a weird bounce from there, and was thrown upwards while still traveling backwards. He slammed hard into the bottom of Serpentera itself, and the impact caused him to unmorph. After that, an unconscious Jason and his morpher fell harmlessly to the floor as the three Rangers quickly ran up to him, forming a circle around him.

"What the hell is he doing here!?" Delphine shouted at the two of them.

"He said he was here to see Billy," Cestro answered.

"Do you think Earth is onto us?" Corcus asked.

"It doesn't matter, because Andros is coming back for him in a few days," Cestro said, shaking his head. "How are we going to handle this? We aren't ready."

"Make the preparations. We'll have to go ahead and commence with the invasion while we still have the element of surprise," Delphine ordered.

"But we aren't fully prepared!" Cestro protested.

"Neither is Earth! This will have to do!" Delphine shouted in response. Cestro unmorphed with an aggravated nod, and ran off to handle this.

"What about him?" Corcus asked curiously as he looked at the fallen Red Ranger.

"Take him to a holding cell or something. If the Rangers get in the way he'll be a good bargaining chip," Delphine casually said.

"He was sent to recover the Crystal of Darkness," Corcus added on as he picked up Jason, dragging him away.

Delphine just watched silently, wondering what the humans wanted the crystal for...

* * *

**A/N: So what's going to happen...? Find out next time!**


	8. The Escape

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: Just another chapter. Thanks to those who reviewed.  
**

* * *

Jason slammed his fist into the floor of his cell. He had been rotting in here for the past few days, although it felt like it had been a few weeks. It was wearing his nerves thin. All he could think about was the betrayal. Had they always been planning this? Why hadn't Zordon's energy wave wiped this damn planet right out of existence? He had to warn Andros and TJ, they were coming back. Tommy needed to know. They had Serpentera and all those smaller things. What were they? And just why had Aurico come by to help destroy that one on the moon? What the hell was going on?

Too many questions. Jason wasn't a fan of thinking things through. He usually stuck to the fighting and left the thinking to Billy.

Billy...

Jason had always felt something a little bit off in that final transmission he had sent them, to tell them all he wasn't coming back. Delphine had even stepped up and spoken for him at the end of the message. It was so strange, but Jason hadn't really thought about it. He just chalked it up to Billy reverting to his shy roots. Now he realized there was probably a gun just off screen, pointed right at him. Billy had been kidnapped right under their noses and they just assumed he wasn't keeping in touch. He had refused to comply...now he was gone. Jason slammed his fist into the ground once again.

Suddenly, though, the sounds of a battle outside shook him from his thoughts. Jason jumped back in surprise as the door leading to the prison burst off the hinges as an Aquitian flew through it, hitting the ground. Jason took a look at him and the forming pool of blood...he was dead. Jason turned to see a familiar Ranger entering the room.

"Trey!" Jason yelled in surprise, leaping to his feet.

"What? Jason!?" the Gold Ranger responded, spinning to see the one he once trusted his own powers to. "What are you doing here? Here, stand back." he said, and Jason stepped away from the door. Trey quickly fired a blast from his staff that destroyed the cell door.

"I was sent to find the Crystal of Darkness..." Jason started saying.

"By who!?" Trey yelled in surprise, cutting him off.

"Kyle Maddox, Kimberly's husband," Jason explained, and Trey tilted his head. "She's a former Ranger. Anyway he's involved with the military and what not. They wanted it as a power source."

"Jason...the Crystal of Darkness can't be used as a power source. Not for anything good at least. I'm here to destroy it," Trey explained briefly.

"Trey!" the Phantom Ranger yelled as he ran into the room, glancing to Jason briefly, but turned back to the king of Triforia. "They've taken the crystal. They're already preparing for the invasion."

"Invasion!? What invasion!?" Jason yelled, eyes widened.

The Phantom Ranger turned to Jason completely now. "What's a...human doing here?"

"Things are more complicated than we thought," Trey explained. "The humans want the crystal, too. This is a former Ranger. Jason, we found an old morpher during our raid. Is it yours?"

The Phantom Ranger handed Jason his morpher, and Jason nodded. "Yea, yea it is. What's going on here?"

"Aquitar has been preparing to conquer Earth for some time, now," Trey said. "Look, we don't have time. The raid's a bust, we have to get out of here. Come on, Jason! It's morphing time!"

Jason just nodded, activating his morpher and holding it in front of him. "Tyrannosaurus!"

Trey nodded as Jason transformed into the original Red Ranger right in front of them.

"Alright. We have to get out of here," the Phantom Ranger said.

"Andros is coming back for me soon, we have to warn him," Jason said as they began running out the door.

"We'll contact him and tell him to break off from our ship. We have a lot of information to exchange I believe," Trey was saying as they moved down the hallways, and Jason just nodded. He knew he had a lot of questions for these two.

* * *

"Kyle Maddox."

Kyle looked up from his paperwork to see who the owner of that unfamiliar voice was, and his jaw almost dropped straight to the ground. It was General Eric Griffin, one of the highest ranking generals in the country. He had recently transferred to California to be near the Power Rangers, who were drawing more and more interest all day. Still, Kyle never imagined he would meet the guy.

"General Griffin, sir," Kyle said, quickly standing and shaking hands with him. "It's an honor."

"Much obliged," the general responded as he took a seat, and Kyle sat back down.

"How can I help you today, sir?" Kyle asked, wondering if he was in trouble for something.

"I heard you sent a man out to recover the Crystal of Darkness," General Griffin said, and Kyle simply nodded. "Jason Scott? The first Red Ranger. Interesting."

"Thomas Oliver recommended him to the highest level," Kyle explained, positive that General Griffin knew who Tommy was.

"Is that so?" the general asked, but didn't stay on the subject. "I would just like to have the crystal transferred immediately to my base instead of yours when you get it. My scientists there have more room and equipment. Alright?"

"Whatever you say, general," Kyle responded, appearing perfectly fine with it.

"Good man," General Griffin said as he stood up. "Keep up the good work."

"Yes, sir," Kyle responded, watching as the general left the room. After the door closed, he went back to his work, but for a split second, a small smile formed on his face.

* * *

"Not everything is as it seems?" Trini asked, confirming she'd heard it right. Kim only nodded.

Trini was sitting next to her fiancé, Zack, in Tommy's small apartment, across the table from Tommy and Kimberly.

"It was so weird. I don't know what happened," Kimberly said, shaking her head.

"Jason told me he got his powers back from Zordon," Tommy mentioned.

"This can't be real. Maybe we're just going crazy! You don't just hear dead people's voices!" Zack said, shaking his head in disbelief.

"You don't travel back in time, you don't travel to other planets, you don't transform into spandex wearing superheroes," Trini said, and Zack nodded his head in defeat.

"So what's Zordon trying to warn us about?" Tommy asked, but suddenly his phone rang. He quickly grabbed it and answered it. "Oliver." he said, then paused. "Hey, Kyle. What's up?"

Kimberly watched as Tommy got up and walked to the other end of the apartment before looking back to her two lifelong friends. "I wish Jason and Billy were here."

"Me too," Trini agreed, and Zack gave a nod.

"Don't worry," Zack said, looking between them. "You know how Jason is, he'll probably talk Billy into a vacation and he'll stop by."

The girls nodded in agreement, and it was silent for a few minutes. Eventually, Tommy came back over and tossed the phone on the table.

"What's up?" Zack asked, noticing Tommy looked annoyed.

"Well, it's confidential, so remember, no one knows. Not even the other Rangers. I'm not even supposed to be telling you guys," Tommy reminded them, and they all nodded, so he continued. "The mission was a success. Jason, Cestro, and Corcus got the crystal with no trouble. There was a small fight he said, but everything's under control. Jason's not coming back just yet, though. He hasn't even seen Billy yet, so the Aquitar Rangers are taking him to him."

Kimberly just gave an understanding nod.

"In exchange, there's some legendary Aquitian relic buried deep underground here on earth, and they want me to go get it for them," Tommy said with a sigh.

"Alone?" Trini asked.

"Nah," Tommy said. "Tideus is going with me."

* * *

"Shit!!!" Trey yelled as they ran into the hangar they had landed in. Pieces of their ship were scattered all over the docking bay...the Aquitians had blown it up.

"Well, now what!?" Jason yelled as he drew his sword, just in case.

"We got a ship coming into the atmosphere..." the Phantom said, looking at a small screen on his wrist. "KO-35 build."

"Andros!" Jason said.

"Our ticket out," Trey corrected him. "Let's go!"

The three of them turned and quickly ran out of the docking bay, not wasting a second of time. When they got into the hallway, five Aquitian soldiers were moving down it. All eight of them froze for a minute, but the Aquitians opened fire. Jason skillfully maneuvered his sword into each laser blast, causing them to reflect off the sword and into the soldiers, killing each one instantly.

"Holy..." the Phantom commented, thoroughly impressed by the reflexes of the Red Ranger.

"They're better than before!" Trey said, but when Jason turned back around, he dropped the subject and they took off running again.

* * *

"This is a pretty nice place," TJ said as he and Andros walked down the ramp of the Astro Megaship.

"It is, I can see why someone would want to move here," Andros replied, heading down the walkway towards the building. "Think they'll mind if we just leave tomorrow? I'm tired of flying around in space."

"I hope not, I'm with you," TJ said, but suddenly frowned. The door ahead of them opened, and instantly three morphed Rangers came running out full speed, with blaster shots flying all around them.

"GO!!! GO!!!" Jason yelled from the front of the group, waving his left hand frantically. Andros and TJ didn't waste any time, and quickly ran back up the ramp and onto their ship, with the other three right behind them.

"What the hell's going on!?" TJ demanded

"Get us out of here! Now!!!" the Phantom yelled.

Andros mashed the button to raise the ramp, while TJ started the controls. TJ quickly got the ship into the air, hovering out of blaster range, but he didn't go any farther.

"What the hell are you doing!?" Jason demanded. "Get us out of here!"

"Tell us what's going on first!" Andros replied, but then his eyes widened as he looked back out the front window. A large hatch opened on the roof of the structure, and Serpentera itself emerged from the building. "Oh..."

* * *

**A/N: More eventually.**


	9. Making a Stand

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: _Finally_, I updated something. I have no idea what the cockpit of the Astro Megaship Mark II looks like (or the first one), so I made one up.  
**

* * *

"Good enough for you!?" Trey asked, but Andros had already leaped into the seat beside TJ. 

The cockpit of the Megaship was two levels, with four seats side by side on the upper level that were just for passengers, the consoles in front of them did nothing to control the ship, they were just information terminals. Behind them was a fairly large area, open area to stand in. On the smaller, lower level at the front were all the controls for the massive ship, and two seats. Usually Andros took the pilot seat on the left while TJ was the co-pilot, but they were in reverse seats this time.

"Leaving Aquitar atmosphere!" Andros yelled as they sped the ship away as fast as they could. "Brace yourselves!"

However, the other three Rangers were all standing in the back, and the sudden shock of entering space knocked them all off their feet. They quickly stood back up, and Trey ran over to one of the consoles. He jumped into the chair, activating the view screens that showed the sides and rear of the ship. Meanwhile, Andros and TJ had activated the smaller one between them.

"Activate the auxiliary thrusters!" Andros yelled, flipping a few switches while looking at the view screen. Serpentera was right behind them, along with plenty of the smaller versions and a swarm of fighter ships. "My God, how many of those things are there!?"

"Enough!" the Phantom replied. "They're called Serpents. They've been constructing them for years!"

"Why didn't you tell us!?" TJ yelled, focusing mostly on getting the ship away from the approaching fleet, though.

"Worry about it later!" Andros interrupted. "They're gaining on us, fast!"

"I thought you said this was the fastest ship in the galaxy!" Jason yelled from the very back, near the door.

"Well...for it's size!" Andros tried to explain, but suddenly the whole ship shook violently from a laser impact. Jason fell to the side, but grabbed the door frame to prevent himself from falling completely. Meanwhile the Phantom fell forwards, catching himself on the chair next to Trey.

"Shields! We need shields!" TJ yelled to his leader, and Andros activated the shields, but the ship was already going slower from that direct hit.

"You guys better morph!" Jason told them, straightening back up.

Andros nodded, and opened a drawer with the five Astro morphers in them. He pulled the red and blue ones out, and handed TJ the blue one. The two of them quickly strapped them around their wrists and entered the codes. They morphed into the Red and Blue Space Rangers without any delay, and went right back to flying the ship.

"They're attacking from the right side!" Trey yelled, and right after the ship shook yet again. Right after it did, several fighter ships passed by and turned around, preparing to make another run.

"We need guys on the guns! Jason, Phantom! Can you handle it!?" Andros yelled, growing increasingly frustrated.

"You got it!" Jason replied, and ran out of the room with the Phantom right behind him.

* * *

Jason and the Phantom Ranger split up and ran into separate hallways. Jason followed the signs towards the right side of the ship, while the Phantom headed toward the left. Each side had a massive gun turret mounted on it. They both climbed up small ladders that led to the controls for each turret. 

Jason climbed into controls for the gun mounted on the right side of the ship, taking a look at the alien controls. There were buttons, switches, levers, and all kinds of other devices all over the place. He tapped his helmet, thinking for a minute. His innate knowledge of Zord control systems that came out every time he morphed took over a little bit, and he started hitting a few switches. It was just a little bit like the Red Dragon was back in the day. The guns powered up slowly, which was fine since he noticed the star fighters were all out of range right now.

The Phantom jumped into the left turret, instantly hitting a few switches. He pulled an emergency lever, and some of the auxiliary power channeled into his guns, powering them up instantly. He then unplugged the radio, and inserted the wire into the back of his helmet, instantly linking him into the system.

Jason reached over and pushed the button to activate his radio after another minute. "All systems go."

"They're out wide," the Phantom said, watching the ships flying around at a safe distance from the ship, never closing in.

"Standard Aquitian fighter tactics," Andros explained. "They all charge in at once."

"They're all turning...look!" TJ said, gripping the controls tightly. He understood why they did this. The suspense...the waiting...it was killing him.

"Get ready..." Trey whispered.

"This was my favorite scene," Jason's voice said over the radio. TJ laughed out loud at that one, causing Andros to look at him for a brief second.

"I'll explain later," TJ quickly said.

"Here they come!" the Phantom yelled through the radio, snapping them back to situation at hand.

Jason and the Phantom gripped their controls tightly, pressing both triggers and opening fire on the ships as they approached. The Aquitian fighters instantly began to break off their attack when the Megaship's superior firepower came at them, but the two Rangers took down the majority of the ships.

"Nice! Nice!!!" Andros yelled into the radio, watching the ships scatter.

The fighters probably weren't going to come back, but he wasn't worried about them as much anymore. The standard Aquitian tactic had lost them at least eighty percent of that strike team, and the two of them were just warming up. Andros looked at the view screen to see the Serpents moving in now. Unlike the smaller fighters, these things were actually bigger that the Astro Megaship. They'd take a lot more firepower to bring down.

"Wait...there's another ship coming at us. It's slowing down!" Trey yelled in clear confusion, shaking Andros from his thoughts. The Red Space Ranger knew exactly what it was, and cursed himself for not seeing it sooner.

"Boarders!" TJ announced.

"It's a trap!" Andros yelled, mashing his hand on the radio. "Jason! Phantom! They're on the ship! Take 'em out!"

"What about those Serpents!?" Jason responded, sounding a bit worried. He knew that he and the Phantom were the only defenses this ship had right now.

"They are on. the. ship." Andros repeated.

"Alright. We're going," Jason said after a few seconds of silence.

* * *

Jason dropped out of his turret, sprinting down the hallway. After a few minutes, he spotted the Phantom, in just as much of a hurry as him. 

"Seen any of them!?" Jason asked, and as the Phantom was starting to shake his head, laser fire slammed into the walls beside them. The two Rangers instantly dove into opposite hallways for cover.

Drawing his blade blaster, Jason glanced over to see the Phantom messing with something on his wrist. The two of them gave each other quick nods, and turned the corner at the same time, facing off against eight Aquitian boarders, all armed with laser rifles.

Jason held out his blade blaster, firing a quick shot right into one boarder's face, killing him instantly. As he aimed for another one, a laser slammed into his gun, throwing it from his hand. The Red Ranger wasted no time, and quickly formed the Power Sword in his hands. He began moving forwards slowly, moving his blade to deflect each shot harmlessly aside.

Meanwhile, the Phantom turned the corner and fired a grappling cable from his right wrist. The end of the cable clamped around one Aquitian's neck, causing him to drop his rifle in surprise. The Phantom pulled back his arm, retracting the cable and pulling the alien towards him. He then held out his left hand, and a large blade emerged from it. The Aquitian ran face first into it. He quickly retracted that blade, causing the dead soldier to slump to the floor.

Jason ran his hand down the blade of his sword, transforming it into a glowing rod of red energy. He took a step forward, throwing the blade at the soldiers. Three of them were perfectly lined up, and the energy stick easily removed all three heads. The sword then did a boomerang style maneuver, and returned to his hand, reverting to it's normal form.

The remaining soldiers didn't even notice the Phantom activate his cloaking device and completely disappear. However, as they went to open fire on the Red Ranger, an invisible force cut each of their throats one by one.

Jason nodded to the Phantom Ranger as he reappeared, and he nodded right back.

* * *

"They're gaining on us!" TJ said, as he kept the ship going at full speed. It was hopeless, though. Aquitar's forces would have them surrounded soon enough. 

"Turn around!" Andros suddenly ordered, causing TJ to snap his head over in shock.

"What?" TJ asked, making sure he'd heard that one right.

"I said turn the ship around!" Andros repeated, growing increasingly impatient.

"I don't mean to sound rude...but that's where the _Aquitians _are," Trey pitched in from behind them.

"Here. Let me fly!" Andros said, and TJ reluctantly switched seats with him.

"I hope you know what you're doing..." TJ said, getting himself settled into the seat he was becoming more and more convinced he would die in.

"Look, they're gaining on us because they're so big. They aren't fast. Our only chance is to outmaneuver them!" Andros yelled, gripping the speed controls and pulling them almost all the way back.

"Those little ones are fast!" TJ reminded him, watching as a ton of fighter ships flew right past them along with a good number of Serpents. They were in deep now...

"Just shut up and trust me!!!" Andros finally screamed, not needing TJ's input at all right now. He turned the ship around, flying straight at the oncoming Serpents and fighters.

Instantly, all the enemy ships turned and tried to close in on the Megaship. Andros skillfully piloted the ship through what was quickly becoming a maze. He wasn't even worried about the fighter ships as their blasts were pretty much absorbed by the shielding, and they never really landed enough hits to cause a large amount of damage. He focused on steering around the Serpents, which had considerably more firepower. Andros cursed, however, when the sensors indicated that a Serpent and four fighters had managed to get behind him. _Now_ he was worried about the fighters. He began weaving back and forth to dodge the continued blasts from the five attackers, while still dodging everything else shooting at him. Luckily, diving into their ranks had caused the complete chaos he'd hope for.

TJ glanced over at Andros...but didn't see the Red Space Ranger. Instead, at the controls of the ship was a man dressed in what appeared to be a very nice Eltaran military suit. He blinked, in complete shock at the sight. Yet, when he opened his eyes again, Andros was sitting there. Was he going crazy? Still...that man reminded him of...

"Andros!!!" Trey yelled in alarm, causing TJ to shake his thoughts and look back out the window. What he saw made his eyes widen. They were heading straight into Serpentera's mouth.

Before his second in command could say anything, Andros suddenly barrel rolled the ship to the side, narrowly dodging the closing teeth of Serpentera. The Serpent behind them, however, was not as lucky, and was smashed in the massive Zord's mouth. Andros then piloted the Megaship up the side of Serpentera's head, with the fighter ships close behind. He then skillfully weaved the ship back and forth through the spikes on Serpentera's back, traveling down it. It didn't take long at all for the four ships to mess up, and crash into the spikes one by one. He then piloted the ship away from Serpentera, and that was it. Free, empty space. They were clear. Behind them, the Aquitians were still trying to regain their composure, but it was too late.

"Set course for Triforia," Trey instructed from behind them, and Andros began silently punching in the coordinates.

There was a sudden lurch, and Andros looked at the view screen to see that Jason and the Phantom had detached the boarding craft. He flipped one more switch, and the Megaship accelerated to lightspeed. They were gone.

"And you said ten Red Rangers was unconventional," Andros said as he and TJ removed their helmets.

"Not bad at all," TJ said, high fiving his leader.

"That...didn't go as well as we'd planned," Trey said, removing his own helmet as well.

"You want to tell us what the hell is going on, now?" Andros asked, messing with a few more controls.

"I owe an explanation to Jason as well. Let's wait for him to get back," Trey said, and the two Space Rangers nodded to each other.

* * *

"Nice job!" Jason said as he and the Phantom were walking back towards the cockpit. 

"Thanks. You too," the Phantom replied, and both Rangers took off their helmets. The Phantom Ranger noticed Jason staring at his grotesquely deformed cyborg face. He closed his eyes and sighed. "Ugly, huh?"

"I'm sorry," Jason said, looking away suddenly. "You just...I don't know. You remind me of someone."

"Well, I should hope so," the Phantom said, tilting his head as they walked.

"Huh?" Jason asked, looking back to the cyborg Ranger.

The Phantom Ranger suddenly started laughing, causing Jason to frown.

"It's me, Jason," the Phantom said, looking him dead in the eyes.

Jason dropped his helmet, eyes wide.

"It's me. Billy."

* * *

**A/N: First time I've done a battle between spaceships...tell me how it was.**


	10. Questions and Answers

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: And here's another update! Thanks again for all the reviews, everyone!  
**

* * *

Jason stared at his friend for what seemed to be an eternity. Finally, he noticed Billy shifting uncomfortably under his nonstop gaze, and moved forwards, pulling his long lost friend into a close hug. 

"They said you were dead," Jason said as a feeling of relief surged through him. He wasn't a man known for shedding tears, especially those of happiness, but he was sure fighting them back, now.

"Well they didn't lie," Billy said, allowing Jason to embrace him, but not returning the hug, either.

"What happened?" Jason asked, letting go and stepping back. "How did you..."

"Turn into this monster?" Billy finished, looking away. "They demanded that I work for them. Keep their technology up to date...all of that stuff. I refused, and they decided to make me a test subject instead. They wanted to create the ultimate Ranger, and decided that one used to the power would be the best specimen."

Jason ran his hand through his own hair in disbelief. So, he'd been more or less right with his guess. That sure didn't make it any better, though.

"They tore me apart...piece by piece...and transformed me into...into this," Billy continued. "The Phantom Ranger."

"I'm sorry, Billy," Jason said quietly. "We had no idea..."

"Of course you didn't," Billy cut him off, shaking his head. "They covered it quite well."

"Then how did Trey find out?" Jason asked, tapping his morpher. The Red Ranger outfit reverted to his normal clothes he was borrowing from Tommy and his helmet, which was still on the floor, vanished into thin air.

"I'll let him explain," Billy said, deciding to put his helmet back on. "Before we go...how is everyone?"

Jason smiled. Of course Billy wanted to know how his friends were doing. "Well...Zack and Trini are getting married."

"Wow..." Billy said. "Must have happened in Switzerland?"

"Pretty much," Jason said. When he had come back to become the next Gold Ranger he hadn't told anyone about Zack and Trini's forming relationship. By the time everyone knew about it...Billy was gone. "Kimberly's married to some...well, I don't know what his exact rank is. He's involved with NASADA and all that."

Billy nodded, crossing his arms.

"Tommy's working on a paleontology degree...and he's got some big project with this Anton Mercer, guy, too," Jason continued. "He's in a stable relationship with Kat. I'm not really sure what Rocky, Adam, Aisha, and Tanya are up to. I do know that Adam and Tanya are married, though."

"What about you?" Billy asked, studying Jason carefully. He didn't seem to be all that in touch with everyone, either.

"What about me?" Jason answered, clearly trying to get out of answering this one.

"What have you been doing all these years?" Billy rephrased.

"We should get back. I've got some questions for Trey," Jason said, shaking his head. He then turned to walk down the hall...

"Jason, wait," Billy said, causing the first Red Ranger to turn back around. "Don't tell them."

"Tell them what?" Jason asked.

"About me," Billy said, looking down. "They're all doing so well...don't tell them this is what I've become. I wouldn't be able to take it."

"Billy...we're your friends," Jason said, closing his eyes for a brief second. So that horrific experience had changed the former Blue Ranger after all. "We don't care what's happened to you. You're still one of us."

"I know, and I appreciate it," Billy said. "But I don't want their sympathy in this. Billy Cranston is dead. All that's left of me is the Phantom Ranger."

* * *

The Red Zeo Ranger and the Yellow Alien Ranger walked fully morphed through the caverns underneath the ruins of the Power Chamber. Tideus had been quiet most of the journey, and although it was nothing new...Tommy still felt a little uneasy for some reason. Apparently some Aquitian weapon was in the ruins, and that's what they needed. Kyle hadn't been able to give him very much information, and Tideus seemed unwilling to talk about it. 

_Well...whatever. _Tommy thought to himself. _Sooner we get it and get out of here...the better._

The two Rangers silently entered what was left of the Power Chamber. Tommy took a deep breath as he looked around, closing his eyes. This was where so much of his young life had been spent...it was nice to be back, even if barely anything remained. When he opened his eyes, however, he saw a sword blade flying right at his head. He barely ducked under it in time, and quickly rolled to the side and looked around.

Tideus was the only one standing there...and his sword was drawn. But Tideus was an ally...he wouldn't...

The Yellow Alien Ranger leaped forwards, swinging at Tommy once again. The Red Ranger rolled aside, forming his Zeo Power Sword in his right hand.

"Tideus...! What the hell!?" Tommy yelled.

"Let's see if the tales about you are true after all!" Tideus answered simply, running forwards again.

Tommy braced himself, swinging a sword slash at his newfound foe. Tideus swung as well, locking blades with the leader of the Zeo team. They held that position for a bit, while Tommy tried to figure out what the hell was going on. Tideus soon pulled back, and swung again, this time at Tommy's feet. Tommy twisted his sword in his hands, blocking that blow as well. They held that blade lock for a minute before Tommy decided he wasn't in the mood for traditional sword play.

The Zeo leader removed one hand from his sword, and swung it instead, landing a backhand on the side of Tideus's helmet. The Yellow Ranger stumbled backwards and quickly fled, and the Red Ranger chased after him. Tideus regained his composure and swung a blind sword slash, causing Tommy to jump back with his hands up. Tideus took a step forwards and swung again, but this time Tommy kicked the sword out of his hand. Tideus stumbled back from that, while Tommy tried to close in on him. The Aquitian quickly recovered, and dove forwards, tackling Tommy head on.

The Zeo Power Sword was thrown from his hands with the impact, and Tommy landed on his back with Tideus on top of him. Tommy quickly threw a punch into Tideus's face, sending the alien rolling off of him. Tideus got to his feet a bit faster than Tommy could, and while the Red Ranger was in the process of standing, the Yellow Ranger swung his foot and practically punted Tommy right in the face. Tommy was thrown away by the blow, landing on his back and rolling to his feet.

Alright. Tommy was officially pissed off. Was this a spell? He could only hope so...but as Tideus ran right at him, he decided he'd worry about it later.

Tideus threw a right handed punch, which Tommy caught with ease. He then twisted the Aquitian's arm around behind his back, holding it there with one hand while placing his other hand on the back of Tideus's helmet. After that, he slammed Tideus's head into a destroyed console, then spun him around and bashed his head against the wall as hard as possible. The Alien Ranger demorphed with the blow, and his unconscious body slumped downwards in Tommy's grip. The Red Ranger picked him up and slung him over the shoulder...heading back out the way they came.

He was going to call the other Rangers and let them know about this. They were going to get some answers.

* * *

Jason and Billy walked back into the cockpit of the Astro Megaship, where the other three Rangers were all demorphed. Trey looked over as Billy took a seat near him, while Jason leaned against the back wall. With the ship on auto pilot, TJ and Andros walked up to the upper level as well. Andros took a seat in another chair while TJ decided to sit on the floor. 

"Alright," Jason said, looking between everyone. "What's going on?"

Everyone's eyes locked onto the King of Triforia, who gave a small nod.

"We discovered Aquitar's true intentions when we received a distress signal from the Phantom Ranger, here," Trey explained. "He had escaped from their labs and was hiding out. I personally led a strike team in, and had a brief battle with them. We've been in a silent war ever since...but I'm afraid things are about to escalate dramatically."

"Why didn't you tell us?" Jason asked.

"That is what confuses me most," Trey replied, looking at Jason and TJ with almost accusing eyes. "We did tell you."

"What?" TJ asked, leaning forwards. "That's impossible. Word travels through the Ranger community _fast_. We both would have known."

"What about Eltar and KO-35?" Andros asked. "It would have helped to tell us."

"I confess, that was my own error. I do not want another universal war. Earth and Triforia can handle this battle. No need to get innocent lives from other worlds involved," Trey confessed, looking at the ground, now.

"Trey..." Billy slowly said, a bit cautiously.

"What I don't understand is how none of the Earth Rangers know about this," Jason said, and TJ nodded.

"That is quite odd," Trey agreed.

"How did you attempt to contact us?" TJ asked, thinking maybe an answer was there.

"Well, without the Command Center or Power Chamber, we had to make contact with NASADA instead," Trey explained. "Every message went through, we even got responses thanking us for alerting them."

"NASADA..." TJ said, looking to Jason. "Who's in charge of inter-planet communications?"

Jason's eyes were burning with anger by now. He knew it. He always knew _something_ was off about that guy, but he never imagined it was something like this.

The Red Ranger slammed his fist into the wall. The man in charge of communication with all other planets was the same man who had given him this mission. The same man who was in such good contact with Aquitar. The same man who slept beside someone so important to him every night. Jason's eyes narrowed.

"Kyle."

* * *

**A/N: Hopefully this chapter cleared up a few things. All I know is that I've been pretty eager to write an actual battle lately...so this was nice. Leave a review and let me know what you think, please!**


	11. Building Tension

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: Going ahead and posting the next chapter. Thanks for the reviews, they're what keep me going!  
**

* * *

Kimberly got into the passenger seat of Kyle's brand new Suburban, while he got into the driver's seat. The married couple had just had lunch at a new place in town. Kyle had taken an extended lunch break today to spend a little bit more time with his wife, since he'd been so busy lately. Now he was going to drop her off back at the house and get back to work, since a few more things had come up. 

"Sweetie, thanks for taking me out," Kimberly said as Kyle started up the car.

"Thanks for coming," Kyle said, backing out of the parking space. "That place was pretty good. We'll have to go there more often."

"Definitely!" Kimberly agreed.

"Again...I'm sorry I've been so busy lately." Kyle apologized for the hundredth time. "We'll be spending more time together soon. I promise."

"Would you calm down?" Kimberly said with a laugh, smacking him in the arm. "I know you're busy. Believe me, I really understand."

"Thanks baby," Kyle said, driving down the road by now.

Kimberly looked down at her phone, she'd left it in the car while they were eating. "Hey...two voice messages."

"Well, isn't someone popular?" Kyle said with a laugh. Kimberly just rolled her eyes and went into her voice mailbox, clicking the speaker phone on as well.

"Kimberly, it's Tommy," the first message started. "Guess who I ran into at the store? Randy! He's over at my place right now, and he's leaving town again soon. Just sorta stopped by. Anyway, he'd like to see you before he leaves, so give me a call as soon as you get this...or just stop by! See you soon!"

"Randy?" Kyle asked.

"Oh my God!" Kimberly almost screamed in excitement. "He's like...our best friend, but he moved away in high school! I _have_ to go see him!"

"Well alright then," Kyle said with a laugh, not thinking about it any more.

The truth was...Randy didn't exist. That whole speech was one of Tommy's several code phrases that basically translated to "We have a Ranger related emergency and need you NOW." Kimberly had gotten pretty good at faking excitement when when fear was the only thing she felt. Still, thinking about how smooth Tommy was about these things helped keep that smile on her face.

"Kimmie, it's Jason!" the second message started.

Kimberly dropped the phone, but she wasn't sure if it was from the surprise or Kyle suddenly swerving into another lane. Probably a little of both. As Kyle recovered the car, she slowly picked the phone back up...noting the delay in Jason's message.

"...Kim...you have to get away from Kyle," the message continued. "He's dangerous and he's a traitor. Run away, stay at Aisha's...Trini's...Kat's...anywhere. You have to stay away from him. Call me as soon as you get this."

Kimberly stared at her phone in shock, with a million thoughts jumping around inside her head. Jason...he'd finally called, and she'd missed it. Kyle was dangerous!? What was he talking about!? And so much for keeping up with code talk. He never was any good at that. Suddenly, she remembered just who she was sharing this car with...and the fact that the car had stopped. She slowly looked over to her husband, with the thoughts of Tommy's emergency running through her head as well. Great. She didn't need this at all.

"What is he talking about?" Kim asked, a bit sharply, deciding to just go for it.

"You tell me," Kyle simply replied.

"How does he know what you're doing?" Kim rephrased, slowly. She had to make sure she didn't say anything that would let him know about her knowledge of his work.

"Does he?" Kyle asked, making sure not to reveal he had seen the guy recently.

"Kyle, don't play games with me!" Kim said, raising her voice now. This was getting harder and harder. "Jason wouldn't just randomly send me that call! What's going on!?"

"Why wouldn't he?" Kyle asked, causing Kimberly to clench her fists in aggravation.

"Because he's my best friend, and he wouldn't lie to me!" Kim said, tired of getting her questions answered with questions.

Kyle let out a deep sigh...this was going to be hard. "Are you sure that's all he is?"

"What?" Kim said, looking a little confused now.

"I'm just saying...I think it's kind of strange," Kyle said, shaking his head. "Think about it. He never got along with me when we were dating...he runs away when you and I get serious...and now he comes back trying to break us apart. Kim, he's in love with you."

"Jason!? In love with me!?" Kim almost yelled in disbelief. "Come on, Kyle. No way!"

"It makes sense. Just think about it," Kyle tried to persuade her.

"No way, besides. He wouldn't do anything like this, even if it were the case!" Kim _was_ yelling by now.

"You know what they say about love..." Kyle said, looking out at the road.

"Yea. Crazy things. Now take me home," Kim bitterly said, looking out at the road as well.

Kyle just sighed and shifted the truck back into gear, resuming the once pleasant drive home.

* * *

Jason hung up his cell phone, grunting in annoyance. Figures she wouldn't answer now of all times. He was standing in some giant telephone booth style device, with all sorts of wires and machinery around it. It was right in the middle of Billy's Triforian lab. What it did was send out the phone signals to Earth, allowing Jason to make phone calls despite being...horribly..._horribly _out of range. Billy sure had a lot of free time if he had a device like this ready for use. 

He set the phone on the floor of the pod, so it would hopefully pick up a return call. He then stepped out of it, noticing Billy was hard at work on some new machine. The Tyrannosaurus morpher was right next to him. _Oh God, Billy. What now?_

"What's up?" Jason asked, stepping up next to him.

"I've configured a device that will restore the other Power Coins based off yours," Billy explained, and Jason noticed the Triceratops, Saber Tooth Tiger, and Pterodactyl coins, all damaged and sitting near his morpher.

"Are those...?" Jason began in shock.

"The originals? The very same that Zordon gave us that day," Billy explained. "I held onto these throughout everything...even though they were powerless...I felt like they were still protecting me."

Jason just nodded...sometimes a little good luck charm was all it took to keep someone moving.

"Actually...I had the Tyrannosaurus, too. I didn't even notice when it vanished," Billy admitted. "Adam still has the Mastodon, right?"

"Last I heard...but it was in bad shape," Jason said.

Billy nodded and went back to work. He inserted the morpher into the machine, and pressed a few buttons. The machine came to life and started humming a little. After a bit, it started shaking violently, causing Jason to back up, but Billy remained comfortably seated in his chair. Suddenly, streaks of white, black, blue, yellow, and pink light shot out of the machine. The blue, yellow, and pink energies went into the respective coins sitting on the table, mending them back to pristine condition, while the black and white lights went through the roof...and were gone.

Billy picked up the blue power coin, looking it over. "It worked. They're recharged."

"Billy..." Jason said slowly. "There was an extra energy streak."

"The white one...the White Tiger..." Billy said. "But I thought it had been destroyed..."

"Would Tommy have it?" Jason asked, getting a bit worried, now. An unaccounted for power coin was never a good thing.

"No...he lost it in the Thunderzords' destruction," Billy said, trying to think where it could be. He was drawing a complete blank though.

Jason's expression was clearly one of worry. "Then...where is it?"

* * *

A large man wearing woodland camo pants, a white t-shirt, and black boots stepped into the office of Kyle Maddox much later that day. Kyle smiled at the sight. He'd called this guy personally...he was an expert at his job. Word had been sent ahead to him that they'd disarmed the man when he entered the building. He'd had an assault rifle, a shotgun, two pistols, four knives, and two full ammo belts on him when he first arrived. Kyle had no doubts they'd probably missed a hidden goodie or two, so he opened the drawer next to him. Inside was a fully loaded pistol, and if this guy flipped out and went crazy...well, it wouldn't be a big issue. There was no reason for him to do so, though. They were about to make the finishing touches on an offer he would be crazy to refuse... 

"This is the paper work stage?" the man asked, looking pretty annoyed about being here.

"No, no. There's no paper work involved here," Kyle said. "This one's completely off the record. I just want to make sure you know the exact assignment."

The man just laughed. "Yea, I got it. Easy. Track down and kill Jason Lee Scott. By any means necessary."

"Right...now, I have no idea where he is...but I have reason to believe he's in this general area," Kyle said, thinking about that call from earlier. "I leave the rest to you."

"Good," the brute said, and turned to leave.

"Wait!" Kyle suddenly said as he reached into that drawer.

The man curiously turned around, and watched in disbelief as Kyle placed a golden coin with a strange white glow on the table. He walked over and picked it up, looking it over.

"...I don't know how close-knit the Ranger community is. At all. If they're a loose organization...that could be all the leverage you need to get in and find him," Kyle said. The files he had given the mercenary mentioned Jason's Ranger past, after all...it was important to know if he intended to kill him. He watched as the man reached behind his back. Kyle's hand went to his pistol, but the man didn't draw a weapon.

Instead...it was a morpher...a first generation morpher. Kyle watched as the man opened it an inserted the coin.

"I can do better than that," the man said, smiling.

Kyle just smiled and nodded back. Suspicious...but he didn't need to know the story behind it. "Very well then. Good luck...David Whaley. Don't let me down."

David laughed as he locked the morpher, looking down at the Tigerzord power coin. "Well Tommy...once again, what was once yours...is now mine."

* * *

**A/N: Surprise sequel! OK, not really...if you haven't read my story The Green Nightmare...don't worry about it. All you need to know is David and the other Rangers (especially Jason) don't like each other. I will say he won't be as major a character this time around...so please don't go away! Anyway, let me know what you think.**


	12. Imminent Danger

**Disclaimer: Still don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: Another big thanks to my reviewers. You guys all rock. Also, I'd like to send thanks to Original Red Ranger, since I can't give him the individual reply like the rest of yall. Anyway, here we go.  
**

* * *

Trey, Andros, and TJ walked into Billy's room, looking around at all the equipment before turning their attention to first Red and Blue Rangers. Billy was pacing back and forth, his cyborg face twisted into a look of discomfort. Meanwhile, Jason was sitting at a makeshift table, calmly stitching some strange pieces of metal to two leather straps. Unfortunately, they didn't know either Ranger well enough to see the irony of this full reversal.

"What's up?" Billy asked, looking to them. Normally, when he was in his room, he took off the full Phantom gear, but right now the only piece he had removed was the helmet, which was sitting on a table near Jason's jacket.

"We sent word to Eltar, KO-35, Mirinoi, and Earth," Trey said. "We told them everything about Aquitar, apologized for not telling them sooner, and warned them of a possible attack."

"Guess who didn't answer," TJ said, crossing his arms. Jason slammed his fist on the table before getting back to work at an accelerated rate.

"What about the others?" Billy asked, knowing that it just wasn't that easy.

"Eltar didn't take the news well. They said they'll be investigating not only Aquitar, but Triforia as well," Andros explained. "Standard, uptight council. Go figure. Mirinoi and KO-35 are boosting their defenses, though."

"Aquitar won't wait much longer," Billy said. "You saw that fleet."

"They have made considerable progress," Trey agreed. "I had no idea the operation was that far along. This don't look to be just an invasion of Earth anymore."

Billy nodded. "I agree. A force like that could take on the universe."

"Trey, I can't stay here," Andros suddenly said, causing everyone to look over at him. "If what you say is true KO-35 is in just as much danger and I have to be there for my people. I won't let it fall again."

"I understand, Andros," Trey said, nodding to the Red Space Ranger.

"I'm coming with you," TJ said, looking to his leader.

Andros looked at TJ for a second, and then nodded. "Alright," he said, looking over to the first Red Ranger. "Jason?"

"I'm going back to Earth," Jason announced, although it didn't really surprise anyone. He stood up, wrapping the straps around his chest in an 'X' shape. The four metal pieces were at the front, and he had connected the other three coins, now in morphers, to the top two and one of the lower ones, leaving one still free. Simple, yet easy to access the additional powers if necessary. After tightening them to make sure they wouldn't fall off, he put his jacket back on.

"I'm going with you," Billy said, picking up his helmet. Trey and Jason both shot him skeptical looks, but Billy just shook his head. "Earth is my home, too."

TJ's eyebrows raised a bit upon hearing that remark, but when no explanation came, he decided not to worry about it. None of his business.

"Jason...take care of Ashley and the others for me," Andros said.

"You got it. Be careful out there," Jason replied, and Andros gave a simple nod before he and TJ left the room.

"I can't go with you," Trey said, watching the two Space Rangers leave, then turned back to the other two. "I have to stay here on Triforia, but I will give you a ship to get to Earth in."

"Thanks, Trey," Billy said, putting his helmet back on.

"Good luck, you two," Trey said, and the two of them nodded, heading out the door.

* * *

Kimberly walked right into Tommy's apartment without knocking, or even thinking about knocking. Instantly she saw all the Zeo and Turbo Rangers, plus Zack, Trini, and Aisha, standing around an alien. Although she had never met any of them, she assumed this was an Aquitar Ranger. However...he looked like a prisoner, almost. Rocky and Adam were on either side of him, looking ready to tear him apart if he made one odd movement.

"Guys?" Kim said, getting everyone's attention.

"Kim!" Kat said, turning to see her friend.

"Sorry I'm late...what's happening here?" Kim quickly asked.

"Kim, meet Tideus," Rocky dryly said, never removing his eyes from the silent alien. "Yellow Aquitar Ranger. Used to be an ally."

"Tried to kill Tommy in that mission to the Power Chamber," Adam picked up.

Kimberly stared at him for a moment, and the alien just shot her a grin that caused her to look away.

"Tommy, I need to talk to you," Kim said, looking to her ex.

"Alright, sure," Tommy said with a nod, and the two of them stepped into another room. "What's up?"

Kimberly pulled out her phone and went into her voice mailbox. Tommy listened intently as Jason's message played, crossing his arms when it finished.

"I don't understand," Tommy said, shaking his head. "He hasn't done anything remotely suspicious."

"Would Tideus know?" Kim asked, and Tommy put his hand to his chin.

"Let's find out," Tommy said, and the two of them walked back into the room with the others.

"Everything alright?" Carlos asked, but Tommy just walked right up in front of Tideus.

"Tell me about Kyle Maddox," Tommy ordered.

"What? Who?" Tideus replied, clearly confused by that order.

"Kyle Maddox, your ally here on earth," Tommy demanded. Kimberly flinched a little and the other Rangers looked at her. She hadn't really wanted Tommy to mention that in front of all of them...but thinking about it, she realized it couldn't be avoided.

"What...? Kim..." Trini said slowly, looking to her lifelong friend.

"We don't _know_ that, Tommy," Kimberly quickly said, not able to look at any of the Rangers in the eye now.

"I have no idea who you're talking about," Tideus said, still looking genuinely confused.

"Well, then who's this 'traitor' Jason's talking about!?" Tommy asked, raising his voice and his fist.

"It's a Ranger," Tideus replied, causing everyone's eyes to widen. "A former Ranger's been supplying us information all this time."

"That's impossible!" Rocky instantly yelled, causing every head in the room to turn and look at him. He frowned at the instant suspicion. "Zordon chose us better than that!"

It was silent for a minute.

"Zordon didn't chose..._all_ of us..." Aisha said, not meaning anything by it, but her eyes still drifted to Tommy and Kat.

Kat, however, didn't like the look her friend was giving her. "Oh, right. I'm the bad guy? Next thing you'll say I wrote Kimberly's breakup letter to Tommy!"

Tommy shifted his suspicious gaze from Aisha to Kat.

"...Well, I _didn't_!" Kat yelled at her boyfriend, who held his hands up as if to gesture surrender.

"Hey! Listen to you guys!" Ashley yelled. "Rocky's right! No Power Ranger would sell themselves out to these guys!"

"To these Power Rangers," Zack corrected her, causing Trini to swat his arm, although she knew he was right.

"You can't listen to him," Adam said, shaking his head. "They've been lying to us all this time, why wouldn't he be lying now?"

"No smoke without fire," Zack said with a shrug. "It sounds like _someone_ has been helping them out."

"Well, how does Kyle factor in, then?" Cassie wondered. "It could be him."

"No way," Kimberly said, shaking her head. "My husband is not betraying planet Earth. Jason must have gotten in wrong."

"Who's your source!?" Tommy demanded, looking back to Tideus. Easiest thing to do would just be to get it out of him before the whole team turned on each other. "Who's been giving you information!?"

"...Jason," Tideus said as he looked around nervously. "Jason's been working with us all this time...and there's nothing you can do anymore. This world, and the rest of the universe, will be ours."

* * *

**A/N: Short, I know. Still setting everything up, though. Sorry if it's not all that good, I'm having some writer's block here.**


	13. Calm Before the Storm

**Disclaimer: Still don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: Next chapter! Big thanks to the reviewers!  
**

* * *

Tommy swung his right fist as hard as he could, connecting with Tideus's nose and sending him to the floor. 

"Liar!" he yelled as the Aquitian Ranger recovered. "Tell me the truth! Who's your contact!?"

"It's Jason!" Tideus answered. "Just...just think about it!"

"Ok. Hm. You're lying!" Tommy yelled.

"...Why did he just up and leave?" Carlos suddenly asked.

"No," Kimberly said quickly. "No, no, no, no! Do NOT go there! We aren't going there!"

"I mean...I don't like the idea either..." Trini pitched in. "But we need to look at everything."

"Trini!" Kimberly said, spinning around to lock eyes with her childhood friend. "How could you say that about Jason!? About the man who's always..."

"Kim, Kim!" Trini said, quickly shaking her head and waving her arms. "I'm not accusing him of anything...I'm just saying we need to look at everything right now."

"Tideus says it's Jason, Jason says it's Kyle," Adam said in a low voice. "And we're even considering what this liar here has to say? Jason says it's Kyle...that's all I need to know. It's Kyle."

"My husband is NOT a traitor, Adam!" Kimberly quickly yelled.

"Then who is?" Rocky asked.

"Is there even one?" Kat said. "What if Jason's wrong and Tideus is lying?"

"That! That's it!" Kim agreed, nodding quickly.

"...You're awful quick to dismiss the idea of a traitor, Kim..." Cassie commented thoughtfully.

"Alright, that's it!" Tommy yelled before Kimberly could respond. "Enough! I'm going to keep a close eye on Kyle from now on."

"What about Jason?" Aisha dared to ask, earning herself a few angered looks.

Tommy shook his head. "I'll sit down with him and get to the bottom of this mess, alright!?"

The Rangers murmured their agreement, before they turned back to Tideus.

"What I don't get, though..." Justin, who was all grown up since his Ranger days, said "...is why? Why did he attack you now?"

"You heard him, Tideus," Tommy said, keeping his eyes on their once friend.

"I've said enough," Tideus simply said.

"You've said no where near enough!" Tommy yelled, when his phone suddenly rang. He didn't even glance at the caller ID when he answered it. "What!?"

"Tommy," Eric's calm and collected voice spoke through the line.

"Eric...sorry," Tommy apologized. "Rough day."

"It's about to get rougher," Eric said, causing Tommy's eyebrows to shoot up.

"What?" Tommy asked, worried instantly. The rest of the team looked at him.

"That...Serpentera thing? That we went to the moon to destroy?" Eric asked, as if he needed confirmation.

"What about it?" Tommy replied.

"You sure there was only one?" Eric asked.

"...Yea..." Tommy answered, getting a little impatient. He'd always heard Eric was the kind of guy to jump right to the heart of the matter. Why was he beating around the bush like this.

"Satellite has picked up hundreds...thousands of them in space," Eric finally reported. "Tommy, they're all entering the atmosphere. They're heading towards Angel Grove."

* * *

"Oh my..." Andros said as they dropped out of lightspeed. He couldn't believe his eyes. A swarm of Serpents were on the outskirts of the planet, surrounding it completely. The thing he noticed first, though, was that the real Serpentera was here as well, at the head of all the ships. 

"Man, look at 'em!" TJ said. "You can barely see the planet!"

"KO-35, do you copy!?" Andros yelled into the console communications system.

"Andros!!!" Zhane's voice came back through it almost instantly. "Andros, they're everywhere! We're rallying the defenses, but...I don't know if we can handle all of them!"

"Are they on the planet yet!?" Andros asked quickly.

"No, they aren't even in the atmosphere," Zhane said. "Where are you? We can't even detect you."

"Behind all of them, my signal must be drowned in all of theirs," Andros said. "Hopefully they won't be able to see me either."

"Andros...!" TJ suddenly said, pointing forwards.

Andros looked up, seeing half of the fleet turning around. _Maybe not_. "Uh, Zhane. Let me um...call you back."

"You've been with that girlfriend of yours too much," Zhane said, but Andros quickly mashed the button to cut the communication. _Don't need your input right now._

"Hang on, TJ!" Andros yelled, gripping his consoles tightly while activating the shields. "We're busting through!"

* * *

Kyle was finishing up the last bit of paperwork before heading home. Although he usually looked forward to seeing Kimberly when he got home, he really didn't want to continue their conversation from earlier. Hopefully Jason would be out of the picture soon...and she'd get over it. He put the cap back on his pen and tossed it aside, leaning back in his chair and taking a deep breath. Done for the day. 

Just then, some young soldier stormed in, almost dislodging his door from it's hinges and causing Kyle to jump up. "SIR! There's an alien fleet preparing to invade! General Griffin requests your presence!!!"

"What!?" Kyle yelled, standing up and grabbing his pistol. "What are you talking about!?"

"I don't know, sir!" the soldier replied. "He said you would know what these things are!"

Kyle nodded, and the soldier left. He shook his head and looked at the pistol he was holding. Shaking his head and holstering it, he ran out into the hall. So much for a normal day at the office.

* * *

Delphine and Corcus stepped into the ruins of the Power Chamber, both fully morphed. Quietly, they scanned the area. They had to do their work here, then rescue Tideus. The plan had been for Tideus to kill Tommy while he was down here as well, since that Ranger had a particularly nasty habit of staying in the way. Should that fail, he was simply supposed to do his job and flee. They hadn't counted on Tommy defeating and capturing Tideus. Their teammate was equipped with a tracking device, though, so they would just pick him up after this. 

"What console does what?" Corcus finally asked, not seeing what he was looking for.

"I'm not sure," Delphine replied, walking up to one and hitting a few buttons.

"Should have brought Cestro," Corcus grunted, crossing his arm. Delphine turned and shot him a lethal glare. Even though her helmet prevented Corcus from seeing her face, the Black Aquitian Ranger was silenced.

"Here," Delphine said, turning a knob. Corcus walked over to take a look.

Some colored bars appeared on the screen in front of them. They were divided into three separated columns, the first column containing seven bars while the other two contained only five each. Well, the seven ones under the first column were all emptied out, while the red, green, pink, yellow, and blue ones in the other two columns were glowing brightly. Delphine smiled. These were the energy readings for the first three sets of Ranger powers on Earth. Right here...unprotected.

"It says the first set is drained," Corcus commented, pointing to the seven bars on the left. "How was Jason using them?"

"They don't seem to be connected to the systems here anymore," Delphine said, punching a few more buttons and flipping some switches.

"How is that possible?" Corcus asked a bit skeptically.

"It doesn't matter," Delphine said, reaching up and turning a knob sharply to the left. They both watched as the bars measuring the Zeo and Turbo powers drained to nothing. "We have the advantage. It would take more than one set of powers to stop us."

"Right," Corcus said, nodding. He then activated his wrist communicator, holding it up to his mouth. "Aurico. The powers are deactivated," he paused for a moment, watching Delphine stab through the console with her sword. "Commence with the invasion."

* * *

**A/N: Still short, I know. They'll be getting longer soon. Lemme know what you think.  
**


	14. The Invasion

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: Bet you thought this story was GONE. Well, a big thanks goes out to CoolDiva and moonlite-n-roses for never shutting up about me getting an update out for this. Seriously, special thanks to those two. This story would seriously be gone and forgotten without them. Sorry for the massive delay though, there were a few factors outside my control contributing...anyways! Here we are, at long last! Enjoy!  
**

* * *

"Tommy?" 

The Red Zeo Ranger shook his head, breaking out of the stunned trance he'd fallen into. He didn't know if that had been Eric on the other end of the line or someone in the room that had brought him back to reality. Not that he cared right this second.

"Tommy, what's wrong?" Kimberly asked, making eye contact with him. The look in his eyes scared the crap out of her...she'd never seen him look so terrified in all her life. "Tommy?"

Tommy closed his phone, shoving it in his pocket. "We gotta go."

"Go? Go where?" Kat asked with a frown.

"Tommy, man...what's going on?" Zack wondered...also voicing the room's confusion.

"They're coming," Tideus laughed from his seat. "And there's nothing you can do."

"What!?" Adam snapped, looking to the captive Yellow Ranger.

"Aquitar is invading Earth," Tommy quickly said, while running up to his gun safe and turning the combination. "They're going for downtown...we don't have a lot of time! We gotta go after them!"

"Invading!?" Justin said, looking around. "What the hell are they invading with!?"

"I'll explain on the way!" Tommy said as he pulled out a twelve gauge shotgun and loaded a few rounds into it.

"And what are you doing with that...?" Trini asked as me moved over to Tideus.

The Rangers just watched as Tommy slammed the stock of the gun into the back of Tideus's head, knocking him out and sending him to the floor.

"Tie him up!" Tommy yelled to no one in particular, assuming someone would do it. Meanwhile, he went back and closed the safe, twisting the knob again. "I need someone to stay here and keep an eye on him...those with powers...we'll do what we can. Those without...help with the evacuation. Who's staying here?"

Silence.

"I...I guess I'll do it," Aisha said with a shrug. Someone had to...she might as well.

"Good! Here!" Tommy said, shoving the shotgun into her hands while Cassie and Tanya began roping the unconscious Ranger to the chair. "If he starts to escape...kill him. Don't take any chances."

"Alright," Aisha said with a gulp and a nod.

"Why is Aquitar invading, Tommy!?" Kimberly tried to ask again.

"I don't know, Kim," Tommy said, a hint of desperation in his voice. "Will you just work with me, here!?"

"Sorry..." Kim said, crossing her arms.

"Alright, everyone!" Tommy said, noticing Tideus was secure. "Load up into the cars! We gotta get downtown!"

"Be careful, everyone!" Aisha called after them as they stormed out of the room.

"You too," Rocky said, giving her a quick smile and nod.

"Thanks," Aisha simply said, smiling as Rocky ran out the door last, slamming it behind him.

Life as a Ranger...always crazy.

* * *

"Maddox! Get over here!!!" General Griffin yelled as Kyle stepped into the room. Kyle quickly moved to the computer screen he was standing over, looking over the shoulder of it's operator while standing next to the general. 

He frowned at what he saw. Hundreds of enemy crafts descending on Angel Grove...here!

"Mind telling me why all these damn things are attacking this city?" General Griffin ordered in a harsh tone, but Kyle was just staring in confusion.

"Good God..." Kyle finally whispered. "We can't fight off all of those."

"Then what do you suggest we do?" the man operating the computer asked.

Kyle looked to the general...and saw the look in his eyes.

"We have to evacuate," Kyle said.

"I want all law enforcement and military units to get down there, now," General Griffin ordered. "This is gonna be hell."

Kyle just nodded as the operator got to work on the computer. While that was going on, he stepped back and pulled out his cell phone. He quickly scrolled through his contact list...and dialed his wife.

* * *

"Look at all of them...!" Carlos whispered from the backseat of Tommy's jeep. Tommy was driving, and Kat was riding shotgun while Carlos was crammed in the back with Ashley and Kim. Behind them, Zack was driving his truck with Trini in the passenger seat and all the other Rangers sitting in the truck bed. Now that they were getting near the city...they could see the sky almost darkened by the uncountable number of those mini-Serpenteras. 

"Don't answer that!" Tommy yelled all of a sudden, and the other three Rangers in the vehicle looked to see Kimberly's phone ringing...and the first Pink Ranger about to pick up the call.

"It's Kyle," Kimberly said, very matter-of-factly.

"Don't answer it," Tommy repeated.

"Are we still assuming he's a traitor, Tommy?" Kimberly challenged. "Because he's not."

"Okay. He's not," Tommy said in a tone that clearly showed he didn't care about that at all at the moment. "Then he's telling you to get out of Angel Grove. What are you going to say?"

Kimberly just sighed as she hit the silent button and put the phone down.

"I don't know what we're going to be able to do," Kat said, looking at all the cars fleeing from downtown. "But at least everyone's getting out..."

"We're just gonna have to make sure that happens," Tommy said. "I don't know what else we're going to be able to do other than that."

"I'm worried about Andros, Jason, and TJ," Ashley threw into the conversation. "After all...they went to Aquitar."

"I'm sorry, Ashley," Tommy said, shaking his head and feeling a little overwhelmed right about now. "We're gonna have to worry about that later."

"Yea..." Ashley said, not even noticing Carlos wrapping a comforting arm around her. She knew she needed to be strong and focus...but times like this made it so tough.

Tommy slammed on the breaks in a random parking lot, and Zack stopped next to him. Instantly they both cut their ignitions, and all the Rangers leaped from the two vehicles.

"Oh, it's the big one!" Rocky shouted from the back of Zack's truck...sounding only a little excited about the odds they were up against.

"Kim, Zack, Trini! Check the area!" Tommy ordered, running onto the deserted city streets. "Everyone else...line it up!"

Tommy just stared upwards at the approaching fleet while the Zeo Rangers lined up to his left...and the Turbo ones lined up on the right.

"You're clear!" Zack yelled from the parking lot.

"Good! Here we go!!!" Tommy called out as he and everyone else got ready to morph. "It's morphin' time!!!"

The Zeo and Turbo teams both ran through their respective motions to activate their morphers before calling out their morphs.

"Mountain Blaster Turbo Power!"

"Desert Thunder Turbo Power!"

"Dune Star Turbo Power!"

"Wind Chaser Turbo Power!"

"Zeo Ranger I – Pink!"

"Zeo Ranger II – Yellow!"

"Zeo Ranger III – Blue!"

"Zeo Ranger IV – Green!"

"Zeo Ranger V – Red!"

The Rangers all let out a battle call, striking various combat poses...only to realize they weren't morphed. Instantly they all dropped out of their stances...feeling a little embarrassed.

"What's wrong!?" Trini cried out from the vehicles.

"That's a REALLY good question!" Rocky shouted back.

Suddenly, though, a massive impact knocked all of them right off their feet.

"Holy...shit!" Adam yelled, looking up first to see the source.

A giant, red colored miniature version of Serpentera stood on it's hind legs...looking down at them.

"What the hell...!?" Kat screamed as everyone stumbled to their feet.

"Aurico!" Tommy yelled, knowing right away by the color scheme. "What the hell is going on, here!?"

"You and your little friends are always surprising everyone, Tommy!" Aurico's voice boomed through what appeared to be a built in PA system. "No more, though!"

The defenseless Rangers all took steps backwards Aurico's war machine began to take a step...but a large energy blast sent it stumbling backwards a few steps.

"Huh!?" Tanya said, looking for the source of that attack and why it was aimed at that. It certainly didn't seem like anything military...

"Look! It's the Phantom Ranger!!!" Cassie screamed, pointing to a random stone balcony that sure enough...the Phantom Ranger was standing on.

Tommy stared in disbelief for a second...but then a massive smile came across his face when he saw the first ever Red Ranger land, fully morphed, on a similar balcony across the street from the Phantom.

And even as more of Aquitar's fleet landed all over the city...for the first time...he felt a little bit of hope.

* * *

Jason shot a glance to Billy, then redirected his attention to the bright red Serpent. Despite the countless machines touching down all over the city...he had picked this one out upon arriving. The bright red color made it obvious to him that Aurico was in the pilot's seat, and therefore, this one was the leader of the attack. Although it was a little funny to him...he couldn't really judge the guy. He would have done the exact same if it were his Zord. 

"You said you had a plan!?" Billy called over to him as they watched Aurico's Serpent slowly appoach.

"Yea...yea, follow my lead!" Jason replied, beginning a series of arm motions. "I need Thunderzord power NOW!"

Billy just stared as Jason held up his right arm...and nothing happened.

"I said Thunderzord power!" Jason said, a little louder this time.

"The Thunderzords were destroyed!" Billy screamed, a little bit of panic creeping into his voice. He was just _praying_ that Jason hadn't been planning to fight fire with fire.

"Dinozord power!" Jason hastily corrected himself, keeping that arm in the air.

"We turned those INTO the Thunderzords!" Billy said, getting frustrated now. "You were there!"

"Ninjazord power...?" Jason tried calling out next, although the confidence was absent in his voice.

"Gone."

"Shogun...Zord...?"

"Gone."

Jason dropped his arms to his side, completely turning to face Billy, now. "Well dammit! What the hell did you do when I left?! Pack the whole fleet into a giant catapult and launch them at the moon!?"

"I remember losing one under you!" Billy shot back, turning to face Jason completely. "Don't act so innocent!"

"It was salvageable!" Jason snapped back.

"Look, can we argue about this later!?" Billy quickly said, noticing Aurico's Zord closing in on them.

Jason nodded and they turned to face the Zord. He tried to form a backup plan in his head...but only one thing came to mind.

"How could you let that thing get trashed!? It was like my baby!" he said, refocusing his attention on Billy.

"How did you not know!?" Billy replied. "It was all over the news!"

"Since when have I watched the news!?" Jason instantly shot back, figuring Billy remembered him better than that.

"Well, I hope you have a plan B!" Billy said a little bitterly, trying to get him back to the situation at hand.

Jason just made an annoyed face under his helmet, looking back to the bright red Serpent as he formed his sword in his hands and held it ready.

"I want a Goddamn flying bike."

* * *

**A/N: Next time...the battle begins! Let me know what you think!**


	15. Behind the Mask

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: Finally to some of the stuff I've been looking forward to writing. After all those shorter chapters recently...here's an extra long one! Once again, a big thanks to all the reviewers!  
**

* * *

Billy watched as Aurico's Serpent moved in on their position, bringing his two wrist blades out as he waited. Despite all his enhancements and upgrades...he still struggled with the combat strategy of letting the enemy get as close as possible before acting. Then again...maybe that wasn't what Jason was doing. Maybe he was rethinking the whole battle plan in these precious seconds. _Son of a bitch._

"What are we doing, now!?" Billy finally called over to his teammate and old friend...only seconds before they were in range of one of those arms.

"Move!" Jason yelled suddenly, as the Serpent took a swing at the two of them. They both leaped upwards, onto the rooftops of the two buildings they were standing on while Aurico took out the two balconies.

Jason mentally cursed himself for the hundredth time as he landed. So his strategy of flying through the lines of Serpents in the Red Dragon had been shot down. Now...he had nothing. It was then that he realized the Rangers were still down there...and if they weren't morphed by now, it was probably for a reason outside their control.

Quickly, the Red Ranger turned and looked down at the line of Rangers. "Get out of here! Help evacuate!"

"Is everything okay!?" Tommy yelled back up to them, obviously concerned about that little argument and their slow movements.

"Does everything _look_ okay to you!?" Jason shouted back, waving his hand at the thousands of landing Serpents.

Apparently they took that point pretty well, because without another word everyone scattered, clearing the street quickly. Jason turned back to Aurico's Zord...just in time to dodge another attack. He leaped backwards, landing on the building next to the one he had been on, barely avoiding the Serpent's claws.

As soon as he landed, though, he saw the Serpent lunge forwards, it's feet completely leaving the ground as it's mouth came near him. Without wasting a second, the Red Ranger turned and leaped from the roof towards the street below, and away from the Zord. Behind him, the Serpent slammed into the buildings in it's trajectory, crushing them completely. Barely dodging the debris coming from his right side, Jason hit the ground running, luckily noting that the Rangers were long gone.

Billy quickly retracted his right wrist blade, instead making his Phantom Laser appear on his right hand. He took aim and fired several shots at the Serpent as it got up, making his best attempt at a frown when they seemed to do nothing. He then let out a loud grunt of dissatisfaction when the Serpent began sprinting down the road on all fours after Jason...causing considerable building damage as it ran.

As he approached an intersection, Jason saw something he could hopefully use to his advantage. He leaped forwards with all the force his legs would give him. While sailing through the air, he hooked his left arm around a street light pole, spinning him and turning him right back around. He then let go, being propelled foot first right at the Serpent's mouth. Aurico, however, simply had the Zord lower it's head, then headbutt the approaching Ranger straight into the air.

That strike threw the Red Ranger off completely, and he spun around uncontrollably as he sailed upwards, high above the tops of the skyscrapers. That had been quite a hit. Aurico's Serpent quickly stood on it's hind legs and flew straight up after him. While trying to steady himself he caught a glimpse of the Zord as it approached, noticing it was being pelted with laser blasts from Billy. Deciding that was actually a pretty good idea, Jason swapped his sword to his left hand while pulling out his blade blaster into his right. Quickly flicking his wrist to ready the pistol, he aimed straight down and opened fire.

The massive Zord continued to fly upwards, regardless of the fire it was taking from the two Rangers. Jason frowned as it got closer, and put away his blade blaster, gripping his sword in both hands. He tried swinging at it, but with another powerful headbutt, Jason was knocked downwards by the chin of the Serpent, back flipping and landing on the roof of some skyscraper. He didn't waste a second, quickly leaping right back into the air...only to be swatted away by one of it's arms.

Billy leaped forwards, hopping across a few rooftops while Jason sailed downwards a second time. He held up his right wrist as if to fire his laser again, but instead it disappeared. As soon as Jason was in range, he fired his grappling cable, hooking the incoming Red Ranger's right ankle. While his companion continued to fall, Billy swung his right arm forward as hard as he could. As a result, Jason's trajectory changed completely. The Red Ranger spun to the side and did a full circle parallel to the building Billy was standing on. At the end of the circle, Jason had gained considerable speed, so Billy detached the cable, propelling the Red Ranger upwards at an incredible speed.

Aurico barely had time to see the Ranger speeding at him like a bullet. He tried to steer his Zord to swat him away, but was far too slow. Jason tucked his head low and slammed straight into the Serpent's chest shoulder first. The force from all that speed knocked the Zord backwards and sent it crashing to the streets below.

Jason, meanwhile, flipped a few times before landing on a rooftop a considerable distance from where he'd left Billy. Landing at a kneel, he scanned the city to see the Serpent army causing complete and utter destruction, fighting off the military resistance with little trouble. He couldn't begin to fathom the casualty count that was stacking up from this whole thing. He shook his head and looked back to the downed Zord. He still had work to do here.

* * *

Andros kept his eyes narrowed and looked straight ahead as he was led down the hallway. So the idea of breaking through the fleet hadn't worked. At all. They'd been caught by a tractor beam while passing the main command ship, then overwhelmed once boarded. So now the Aquitians were taking the two of them somewhere deep into the command ship, as they'd been walking for quite awhile. As they came up to an intersection of hallways...he saw two very familiar faces with their hands also cuffed behind their backs, walking towards them. 

"Karone! Zhane!" Andros yelled, struggling against his bonds for a second. That proved futile, and the soldier right behind him smacked him on the back of the head with the stock of his rifle to make sure he wouldn't try again.

"Andros! TJ!" Karone screamed back, only to be hit in the back with a rifle herself.

The two parties met up, and the Aquitian guards continued to lead all four of them to the same destination. Andros made sure he was standing right next to Karone, and walked close to her, just as a protective instinct. He noticed Zhane was doing the same to her right...while on his own left side TJ was sort of distanced from them.

"So...want to tell me what's going on, here?" Zhane asked from the right side of the line.

"They're bad," Andros said, jerking his head back towards the Aquitian guards.

"No kidding," Zhane sarcastically said. "Any other observations?"

"They're trying to conquer the universe," Andros shortly said, locking eyes with Zhane.

"Well that's just..." Zhane started.

"Come on, guys!" Karone interrupted. "Andros, TJ. What's happening?"

"I don't know. I found out about this from three other Rangers on my way back from telling Eltar the universe is secure and they could relieve a large portion of the military," Andros said, and TJ closed his eyes while walking, not wanting to be reminded.

"We've got to think of something," Karone said, looking between the two men on either side of her.

Before anyone else could say anything, though, they came to a large, sealed door. One of the guards swiped a keycard through a console, something which all four Rangers paid close attention to, and the door opened. They were led inside, and the door sealed and locked behind them.

TJ looked around, noticing instantly that it was far less humid here than on the rest of the ship...which meant that someone who wasn't Aquitian was in this room.

Andros, however, had his eyes locked on a pedestal in the middle of the large, circular room. Sitting on it was a strange, black crystal that seemed to be absorbing all the light in it's immediate area. There seemed to be some sort of casing around it, obviously for protection. The Red Astro Ranger knew instantly what he was looking at.

"The Crystal of Darkness..." Andros whispered.

"What?" TJ asked, looking over to his leader.

"That's what Earth wanted...they sent Jason after it," Andros said, looking to TJ for a second before redirecting his full attention to the crystal again.

"Serpentera was a powerful weapon, and a tool capable of immense destruction," a voice from the shadows said. All four Rangers turned to see a figure walking from the dark corner of the room. "But Lord Zedd was unable to find an energy source strong enough to power its many systems for an extended amount of time...a problem I have found the solution to."

"Vile..." Karone whispered through her teeth as the figure stepped into the light.

"It's been awhile, Astronema," Master Vile said with a smile.

"Don't call me that!" Karone snapped in a low voice, narrowing her eyes.

"I figured someone was holding Aquitar's leash," Andros said, with a thoughtful look on his face. "But you're supposed to be dead."

"Dead?" Master Vile laughed. "No, Andros, I'm afraid that murdering the leader of your own forces won't solve all your problems."

"So, how'd you do it?" TJ asked, while Andros tried to get his hands free once again. Vile had hit a really sensitive subject. "Brainwash an entire planet, dig up a Zord Tommy and Andros were keeping their eyes on, and stage an invasion of the entire universe without a single person knowing...what happened?"

"It was nice...when Aquitar revealed to me how they'd been plotting this all along. After our battle on earth we worked a few things out and discovered we were on the same wavelength...just taking different routes. Of course, needless to say, when things started getting a little out of control, we had to speed up the project. You can thank your phantom friend for that one," Vile said, turning to look out a window at the siege of KO-35. "But I'm not here to discuss my tactics with you."

"Really? I thought this was the 'Now that I've captured you, here's my master plan' part," Zhane said.

"Karone...Astronema..." Master Vile said as he turned around, ignoring Zhane. An Aquitian guard led her over to Master Vile, while the others prevented the rest of them from getting in the way. "I give you one chance...reclaim your title as Astronema, serve by my side, and rule the universe...just like you always wanted."

Karone didn't give it a second thought. Her only answer was to spit right in Vile's face. The enraged overlord slapped her across the face in an instant, sending her to the floor.

"Take them away and lock them up!" Master Vile shouted to the guards. "When we conquer their world, we shall make public examples of all these fools!"

Karone was lifted to her feet, and the four of them were led out of the room, leaving Master Vile to seethe in his rage.

* * *

Billy hopped across the rooftops, looking down at Aurico's Serpent as it stumbled to it's feet. He finally stopped next Jason, noticing he was getting ready to leap right back at it. 

"You're just making him mad!" Billy informed him, while readying his Phantom Laser once more.

"Well, that thing's doing a lot of good, too!" Jason said, gesturing to the gun.

"Alright, so we're both just making him mad!" Billy agreed. "We need a plan!"

"The Wild Force kid ran straight through it's mouth and tore it up from the inside!" Jason remembered. They both looked as Aurico engaged his Zord's boosters once again, and took to the air. "I'm going for it."

"Didn't he have a vehicle!?" Billy quickly asked, but it was too late. Jason had already leaped straight up at the Zord. "Wait, JASON!!!"

Jason sailed upwards through the air, holding his sword ready. He narrowed his eyes as the Serpent's mouth opened wide...practically inviting him to come in and wreak havoc on it's systems. His eyes widened, though, when he saw a massive burst of energy come straight out of the Zord. The blast hit him head on, and knocked him right out the air.

Billy watched in horror as Jason slammed onto the top of a building, the impact launching pieces of the roof all over the place. Billy guessed Jason had gone at least a few stories in. He realized then that Aurico had seen that tactic coming...because he'd been standing alongside the other Red Rangers when it was discovered. He then looked up to see the Serpent forming a much larger energy blast in it's mouth...one that would surely be the end of Jason. Billy took a deep breath.

"One chance," the Phantom Ranger whispered to himself, activating his cloaking device and turning invisible.

Billy hopped over to the building Jason was somewhere inside, then leaped straight up at the incoming blast with all the force his cybernetic limbs would allow. As soon as he slammed into it he felt himself slow down, but not enough to stop his jump. As the energy tore away at his Ranger armor...he pressed forwards, ignoring the immense pain that his few remaining human parts was feeling. He had to do this.

Jason leaped out of the hole in the roof, glancing around. Seeing the slow moving blast coming right at him, he leaped to the side, landing safely on another building. He quickly scanned the area, looking for Billy...not seeing him anywhere. Then he glanced up to see the blast from the Serpent's mouth folding back in on itself, and realized what was happening.

"No...no!!!" Aurico yelled, fueling all his Zord's power into stopping this unknown force. He knew when he was beaten, though. This thing was turning the entire attack right back into his own Zord. Aurico slammed his fist into his console, knowing what he had to do. The Red Alien Ranger opened the hatch above his seat...and leaped from the Zord.

The Red Ranger could only watch in awe as the whole blast was forced back into the Alien Ranger's Zord. Instantly the entire thing began to explode from the inside out. As the explosions were taking place, Jason noticed two things. First he saw Aurico leaping from the Zord, abandoning it now that it was being destroyed. Second, he saw what appeared to be a robotic skeleton flying from the back end of the Zord, landing in a nearby construction site...

"Billy!!!" Jason screamed, leaping after his fallen friend...with the Red Aquitar Ranger hot on his heels.

* * *

"Over here!!! It landed over here!!!" Kimberly screamed as she and Trini ran into the construction site. 

"I see it! Over there!" Trini shouted, pointing to the fallen cyborg...that wasn't moving much at all.

The two girls stopped, kneeling on either side of what was left of the Phantom Ranger.

"Trini! Can you help him!?" Kimberly said, looking over the mess of wires and circuits, with a little bit of flesh here and there, with sparks shooting out from all over the place.

"I don't know..!" Trini frantically said. "I wish Billy were here!"

"Run...it's too late...for me..." the Phantom whispered to them.

"Just hang in there!" Trini said, trying to mess with some of the wires. They were all frayed and cut, and she had no idea where any of them went. This was hopeless.

There was a loud thud, and the two girls turned to see that the first Red Ranger had landed near them. They just watched as he tapped his morpher, his outfit reverting into his normal clothes and revealing the man they hadn't seen in years.

"Jason!" Trini said, in disbelief at the sight of him after so long. Kimberly, however, just remained quiet and stared at him.

"You...stupid son of a bitch!" Jason said, ignoring the girls as he took a knee in front of the Phantom.

"Can't let you have all the fun," the cyborg replied, forcing up a laugh. Then his cybernetic eyes came out a bit, zooming in on something. "Behind you!"

Jason stood up and turned around just in time to see Aurico land, unmorphed, several yards away from them.

"You..." Jason said in a low voice. "That was clever. Joining us on the moon so we wouldn't suspect a thing."

"If those damn Machine Empire remnants hadn't stumbled onto that recon ship there wouldn't have been a problem. But how could I say no to a call for all Red Rangers?" Aurico said. "Then again, if you had done your job and killed Venjix like we expected of you, the thing would have never taken flight. Although I suppose I should thank you for allowing me to see one of the fleet's key weaknesses."

"Don't play the blame game, Aurico, not with me," Jason replied, shaking his head. "You don't want to get started with me on what we expect of Rangers."

Aurico just laughed as Delphine, Corcus, Cestro, and Tideus landed on both sides of him, keeping him in the middle. Kimberly and Trini quickly stood up upon seeing Tideus, and stepped up next to Jason.

"Hey, yo!" Zack yelled, running up to his three friends, with the Mastodon morpher in hand. Upon realizing potentially all the original powers were active he'd been unable to find Adam, and instead dug through his successor's backpack and found the old morpher in perfect condition. Stopping next to his fiancée, he grinned. "Looked like a party was gathering here without me!"

Jason just nodded to Zack, and quickly detached the Saber-tooth Tiger and Pterodactyl morphers from those two leather straps, handing them to Trini and Kimberly. "Here! You'll need these! I'll explain everything later!"

The two girls just nodded, knowing now wasn't the time to ask questions.

"You're still outnumbered," Delphine reminded them, a hint of amusement in her voice.

"Not quite," the Phantom said, limping up next to Kimberly. Although his Ranger gear had been completely destroyed...he still had a backup. "Jason!"

"Thought you'd never ask," Jason replied, detaching the last morpher and tossing it to the cyborg.

The other three Rangers turned their heads to look at the Phantom as he caught it...realizing the same thing all at once.

"Billy..." Kimberly whispered in shock.

"You ruined my life," Billy snarled, staring Cestro down and not daring to look at his old friends. Blowing his cover had been hard enough...he didn't want to see the sympathetic looks from the remaining three.

Zack, Trini, and Kimberly quickly refocused on their former allies. Despite wanting to ask a million questions or just take their old friend into a hug...their experience reminded them to focus on the situation at hand. So, as hard as it was, they held the line.

"You were offered a choice...and you made it," Cestro reminded him, with a sly grin.

"Just like you've made yours," Billy replied.

"Get ready, Aquitian Rangers!" Delphine ordered, and the Alien Rangers quickly crossed their arms in front of themselves.

"Here we go, everybody!" Zack shouted, and the first five Rangers activated their morphers, holding them ready.

"It's morphin' time!!!" Jason and Aurico shouted at once.

* * *

**A/N: One battle ends...and another begins! Whew! Let me know how it was!**


	16. Clash of Two Worlds

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: Alright...here we go! An update at last. Once again, thank you to all the reviewers.  
**

* * *

"White Aquitar Ranger Power!" 

"Black Aquitar Ranger Power!"

"Blue Aquitar Ranger Power!"

"Yellow Aquitar Ranger Power!"

"Red Aquitar Ranger Power!"

"Mastodon!"

"Pterodactyl!"

"Triceratops!"

"Saber-tooth Tiger!"

"Tyrannosaurus!"

As soon as they finished morphing, the five Aquitian Rangers drew their swords, while the five Power Rangers materialized their respective weapons into their hands.

"Feels good to be back!" Zack shouted, tightly gripping the Power Axe once again.

"Billy! You okay?" Jason quickly asked, looking past Kimberly to see the Blue Ranger struggling to stay standing. Maybe letting him fight wasn't such a good idea...

"I'm fine!" Billy snapped back, standing up a little straighter. "You don't have to worry about me!"

"Rangers of Earth...let's end this," Delphine said, getting their attention once more.

No more words were spoked. Instead, all the Rangers leaped upwards...except for two. Both Red Rangers held their ground as the battle began above and around them. After a few more seconds of silence, Aurico started laughing.

"Well, well," Aurico said as his laughter slowly faded. "We Reds have more in common than we think."

"Don't ever compare yourself to me," Jason said in a low voice, his grip on his sword tightening.

Aurico just laughed again. "Well, what do you say we settle this like Red Rangers, then. No weapons...just our own powers and skills. I figure we owe each other that much."

Jason just watched as Aurico dropped his sword to the ground next to his.

"I don't owe you anything," Jason simply said, raising his sword.

Aurico instantly went to recover his own blade, knowing he wouldn't get the fight he wanted. It was far too late, because in a lightning swift motion, his opponent had transformed his own sword into a beam of red energy and hurled it right at him. Aurico was thrown backward from the impact, but quickly rolled to his feet shortly after hitting the ground, while Jason's sword stabbed into a steel support beam several yards behind him. As soon as he had recovered, he noticed that Jason had already closed the gap.

Jason sprinted in as fast as he could, throwing a punch right at Aurico's face. The Red Alien Ranger ducked under it just in time, and threw an uppercut at Jason's chin as he rose. Jason easily swatted that attack aside, taking a step backwards as he did so. Aurico seized the opportunity to be on the offensive, stepping forwards and delivering a straight punch to his opponent's face. With no trouble at all, Jason sidestepped the attack while grabbing Aurico's wrist with his left hand. Standing sideways to his opponent, Jason gave a hard pull, causing his foe to stumble forwards. As soon as Aurico was in range, Jason slammed his right elbow into his face, stunning the Aquitian. He then twisted the alien's wrist around, putting him at an awkward angle that allowed him to slam the Red Alien Ranger face first into the ground.

Aurico hit the ground hard, feeling the wind get knocked out of him. He took a deep breath and fought through it, raising to his hands and knees so he could stand. That effort was quashed when the Red Power Ranger kicked him right in the stomach, sending him rolling away. Using the little distance and time he hand, Aurico quickly rose, only to be punched square in the face. Spinning around from the impact, the Aquitian slammed slammed hard into one of the steel support beams...the one that Jason's sword was stuck in. He quickly ripped the sword from it, and with a quick spin slashed the approaching Ranger away.

Jason leaped backwards a second time when Aurico charged forwards and swung again. On his third approach, however, Jason ducked low and kicked the evil Ranger's feet out from under him. Aurico fell backwards, cursing as he dropped the sword. Meanwhile, Jason rolled sideways a few feet before standing. As soon as he was up, he charged at Aurico as fast as he could, leaping forwards and landing a jump kick square into his chest almost the second he got up. Aurico was lifted straight off the ground, and flew backwards through some drywall. After that, he hit the rolled down a dirt hill into an open field, cursing violently as he stumbled to his feet. He glanced up at the small hole he had made, quickly drawing his pistol and firing at Jason as soon as he stepped up to it. The Earthen Ranger wisely stepped away, and the blast sailed past him.

Aurico, however, knew when he was beat. Jason was going all out, likely running on rage. A hindrance to most fighters...yet this one was able to use it to his advantage. Whatever, he'd contemplate it later...for now he decided to live and fight another day. When Jason charged through the drywall at him, Aurico fired off one last shot and caught him in the chest, knocking him right off his feet. Satisfied to end on that note, Aurico holstered his pistol and sprinted off.

Jason stumbled to his feet after an awkward roll down the dirt hill, drawing his blade blaster and switching it to his pistol mode. Disoriented, he aimed in the wrong direction at first, but quickly recovered and aimed after Aurico. He took a few steps forward upon realizing his target was out of range, but quickly stopped. Sure, it would be nice to give chase, but he realized it would be best to help the other Rangers instead. Holstering his blade blaster, he sprinted back up the hill and into the construction site once again.

* * *

Trini and Tideus kept their eyes locked on each other as they both sailed upwards. Trini knew that she would have to rely entirely on her own agility and reflexes since Tideus's sword had a considerable range advantage over her two daggers. Not to mention he was known as the powerhouse of the Aquitian team...so this would truly be a test of speed versus strength. 

Both of them did backflips and landed on an incomplete floor, keeping the gap in between them. Trini, however, wasted no time and leaped across the gap at Tideus, holding her daggers backwards. As soon as the Earthen Ranger neared him, Tideus swung straight down at her with his sword. Trini landed crouched in front of him, and rolled to the right just in time to dodge the strike. To his dismay, the Alien Ranger's sword cut into the floor, and got stuck there tightly. While he struggled to pull it out, Trini charged in from the side, but Tideus threw a powerful side kick that launched her backwards and straight through some drywall.

With no floor on the other side of the wall, Trini fell three stories before she slammed into a steel bar, bending it slightly as her back hit it. She let out a scream of pain at the impact, but kept her grip on her two weapons and stood up on it after a second. She looked up to where she had from, only to see that Tideus had leaped out, sword in hand, and was approaching her fast. She bent her knees a bit, preparing to get out of her enemy's way...but was far too late. Tideus slammed his foot hard into Trini's face, propelling her off the steel bar and further downwards. As she sailed downwards, the Yellow Ranger tried to regain her balance, but as soon as she slammed through a water pipe and split it in two, she lost complete control and began spinning uncontrollably through the air. After falling a bit more, she hit another steel support pole, and then dropped to the dirt a story below. As Trini limped to her feet, she gave Tideus a murderous glare through her visor as soon as the Aquitian Ranger landed a little bit away from her.

Tideus charged forwards, stabbing at Trini with his sword once again. Trini quickly crossed her wrists, and along with that her daggers, and swung downwards as the tip of the blade approached. She managed to push the sword down, and spread her legs a bit, causing the sword to go right between them. Trini knew she was in a bad spot, and decided to bail out. So, with a powerful leap, she flew upwards. At the top of the jump she did a simple somersault and landed on the building's roof. Tideus landed on the other end not long afterwards.

The Yellow Aquitian Ranger didn't waste a second, and charged at his Earthen counterpart as fast as he could. Trini braced herself, and easily blocked the first overhead slash. Tideus brought his sword back, and swung again, only to have it effortlessly blocked. Frustrated, the Alien Ranger swung six more attacks, each easily blocked, before raising his right leg and swinging a kick at the Yellow Ranger. Trini brought up her left knee, blocking the attack with that, then crossed her daggers over her head, blocking a final downward slash. She pushed up with all the strength she had, throwing Tideus off balance and sending him stumbling backwards. Instead of swinging at him while he was recovering, Trini instead leaped over him, landing on the opposite side of the roof. Her feet had barely touched ground again before she leaped right back at Tideus, crossing the roof in one jump and delivering a powerful slash to his back. Tideus stumbled forwards, right up to the edge he had hoped to force Trini off. Instead, Trini closed the gap once again, and with a swift jump kick, knocked him right over the edge.

Tideus hit the ground hard after banging into various pipes and beams the whole way down. He got up as fast as he could, though, and took off running, knowing he was beat. Trini looked down after him, and considered pursuing the retreating Aquitian, but instead decided that her friends would need help. So, without giving him a second thought, the Yellow Ranger hopped straight down, hoping to find one of the other Rangers' fights.

* * *

Zack sailed upwards far faster than Corcus, landing on a halfway complete floor several stories up. He readied his battle ax, watching carefully as Corcus kept going past his level...but not for too much longer. The Black Aquitian Ranger settled onto a steel beam two stories above, readying his sword as he stood up. 

"Come and get some, big guy," Zack mumbled under his breath.

As if answering to the challenge, Corcus leaped downwards at Earth's first Black Ranger, swinging that sword as soon as he got in range. Zack stood his ground, though, and deflected the strike with a powerful swing of his ax. Corcus's path was slightly skewed from Zack's influence, but he didn't dare stop. Instead, he landed to the right of Zack, and leaped in for another strike. Zack easily parried that blow, and Corcus kept moving as fast as he could. The Black Aquitian Ranger continued this relentless assault, bouncing off every object he possibly could and strafing the Zack with his sword slashes. Zack was up to the challenge, however, and blocked every single one without changing his own position.

Finally, Corcus charged at Zack from the front, leaping with all the power he could possibly muster. Instead of simply parrying this time, Zack swung a powerful overhead blow. Corcus was forced to maneuver his sword over his head to block the attack, but the sheer force still sent him straight through the floor.

Zack smiled in satisfaction for only a second. After that, he leaped straight up into the air, with Corcus leaping straight through the ground he had been standing on and following him upwards. As the two Black Rangers traveled upwards through the air they began exchanging blow after blow with their two weapons. When their upward ascent began to slow, Zack slammed his two feet into Corcus, pushing off and flying to the side. Corcus slammed into a steel beam hard, but quickly recovered and leaped after his opponent. Zack leaped aside this time, and Corcus only briefly touched down on the beam Zack had been on before leaping after him. After hopping around a little bit more, Zack finally leaped straight through a window, with Corcus hot on his heels. Earth's Black Ranger landed on a window ledge of a building next to the one they had started in, and as soon Corcus got near him, he jumped straight up. While the Black Aquitian Ranger slammed straight through the window, Zack landed on the roof of the building, very satisfied with himself over that one.

After a few seconds, Corcus leaped over Zack and landed on the opposite end of the roof. Zack just spun on his heel to face his opponent once more.

"Not bad...not bad..." Corcus admitted, holding his sword ready.

"You guys are making a big mistake!" Zack yelled over to Corcus. "But it's still not too late to give up."

"Is that your way of saying you're scared?" Corcus mocked with a laugh.

"I was hoping you'd say something like that!" Zack shouted, charging in to close the gap. As soon as he saw the movement, Corcus charged in, too.

Meeting in the middle of the roof, the two Rangers slammed their weapons together as hard as they could. However, Zack had far more force behind his, and Corcus's sword was thrown from his hands and right over the roof's edge. While Corcus was still staggering from the hit, Zack tried throwing a kick at his stomach. Corcus recovered just in time, though, and caught Zack's leg in his hands. Without wasting a second, the Aquitian gave powerful pull, ripping Zack right off the ground. Corcus began spinning in a circle as fast as he could, getting faster and faster.

"So long, Black Ranger!!!" Corcus screamed, releasing Zack and hurling him high into the air.

Flying upwards, Zack was able to regain his balance, and looked down at Corcus. Without wasting a second he converted his ax to it's cannon mode, then quickly aimed downwards at his adversary.

"Come on, baby! Full power!!!" Zack shouted to himself as he released a massive energy blast from the gun.

Corcus saw it coming, but there was nothing he could do. With one last yell, Corcus and the entire roof were engulfed an explosion of energy, shaking the foundations of the entire building. The blast's radius expanded a little over the edge before dying out. Zack fell through the smoke, landing on the floor below the destroyed roof. When the smoke cleared...there was nothing left. Corcus was gone...completely obliterated.

"Yea, so long, Black Ranger!" Zack victoriously cried out, spinning on his heel once more and striking a pose at the end, just for kicks. After that, though, he got serious, and ran off to find the other Rangers.

* * *

**A/N: Yep, yep. Nothing but action this time around. Next time...Kim and Billy's battles. Let me know how these were!**


	17. All That's Left

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: As always, many thanks to all the reviewers. You guys rock. Here's the next part! **

* * *

Ashley and Cassie wiped some sweat from their foreheads as they finished moving some debris off of a car. Luckily, no one was in the vehicle, but this was just one of many disasters they'd been dealing with, all while avoiding those large machines. This area had been a landing zone, though, and the invading crafts had moved on to other parts of the city. Even still, they were keeping low...just in case. 

"I just don't understand," Ashley said, looking around at the devastation. This was far worse than the attack from the United Alliance of Evil. "How could this happen right under our noses?"

"I don't know," Cassie simply replied, at a loss for words.

Ashley looked up, and smiled in disbelief at what she saw. The Mighty Morphin' White Ranger was leaping from building top to building top, heading straight to the construction site they'd seen Jason, the Phantom, and all the Alien Rangers gathering. They'd also caught a glimpse of the original Black Ranger above the buildings, firing some attack off, but they didn't know if it was Zack or Adam. What they did know was that was the place to be if you still had powers.

"Look! Cassie!" Ashley screamed, pointing to the White Ranger as he passed them.

Cassie looked up and smiled, then raised up a fist and shouted up to him. "Go kick some Aquitar ass, Tommy!!!"

"I don't know how he does it," Ashley laughed, watching the Ranger leave.

"Me either, Ashley," Cassie said, still grinning from ear to ear. "Me either."

* * *

Kimberly drew an arrow from thin air as she and Delphine leaped upwards, and quickly pulled it back and fired at her opponent. Delphine swatted the arrow away with her sword as they both landed on two steel beams overlooking the long drop back to the floor. 

"Who's your contact!?" Kimberly demanded, holding her bow ready to attack.

"What are you talking about?" Delphine responded without missing a beat, and with the same confusion Tideus had displayed back at Tommy's place.

With a loud groan of frustration, Kimberly leaped at her enemy head on. Delphine braced herself, and swung low and upwards at the Pink Ranger when she closed in. Kimberly quickly held her bow below her as she flew parallel to the ground, blocking the attack and slamming the top of her helmet into the front of Delphine's. The leader of the Aquitian Rangers hadn't been expecting that at all, and the headbutt launched her backwards. Kimberly landed on the steel beam and watched as Delphine landed on an incomplete floor about two stories down. Wasting no time, Kimberly began to fire arrow after arrow down at her foe, who quickly bolted away from the projectiles.

Delphine quickly scaled the distance upwards, dodging each attack from Kimberly with little effort. Finally, she landed back on the steel beam, and sprinted in to close the gap between the two of them. The Pink Ranger began backing up, shooting arrow after arrow as Delphine moved in. The White Alien Ranger easily slashed each one out of the way, and when Kimberly had her back to a support beam, she stabbed at her throat for the kill.

Kimberly ducked just in time, and the blade barely missed her head. While Delphine was recovering from the swing and preparing to strike again, Kimberly stood up and swung upwards with her bow, catching the Aquitian under the chin and knocking her backwards. Kim took another step forward and swung at Delphine's neck with the Power Bow, but the Alien Ranger leaped backwards in time to dodge.

"I'm not kidding around!" Kimberly screamed again. "Who's been helping you!?"

"Like always, Pink Ranger, no one understands a damn thing you're saying!" Delphine shouted back, charging at Kimberly once more.

Kimberly flipped to the side, dodging a sword slash. She dropped from the beam and landed gracefully on another one, but Delphine landed right in front of her, and swung again. With amazing agility, the Pink Ranger preformed a back handspring to dodge the attack as well as get some distance. She kept going backwards in such a manner when Delphine kept moving in and swinging at her. After a few more, she landed and blocked an attack with her bow, holding their lock momentarily.

The two women said nothing this time, just starred each other down through their helmets. Finally, Kim swung a powerful kick into Delphine's side, knocking her right off the beam and to a platform below them. Delphine landed awkwardly on her knees, dropping her sword in the process. As she reached for it, Kimberly was already drawing back an arrow. The Pink Ranger released it, and watched silently as it went straight into Delphine's neck, stopping about halfway through.

The White Alien Ranger tried to speak, to curse her enemy, but all that came out was an incoherent gurgle. And with that, Delphine collapsed to the floor only inches away from her sword...dead. Kim grimaced at the sight, but quickly leaped off to find the others.

* * *

Billy and Cestro landed on a platform after a short jump, facing each other silently with their weapons in hand. Cestro studied the first Blue Ranger carefully, smiling when he saw him hunch over momentarily. 

"Your systems are failing, Billy," Cestro said with a laugh. "You're dying. Not even Ranger powers can save you now."

"I don't care," Billy said with a painful groan. It was all he could do just to stay standing and holding the Power Lance. "I'm going to kill you...after what you did to me. That's all that matters now!"

"You can't even stand up straight anymore, fool," Cestro chuckled. "What makes you think you can defeat a Ranger at full power?"

"You...are no...Ranger!!!" Billy screamed, hurling his Power Lance at Cestro like a javelin.

Cestro easily side stepped the attack, watching as the weapon stabbed into the wall behind him. He laughed and looked back to Billy, who had fallen to his knees.

"No more?" Cestro asked in a mocking tone.

"I hate you..." Billy whispered, tightly closing his eyes from the intense pain running through his body.

Cestro charged forwards, slamming his foot into Billy's face and punting the cyborg backwards. Billy cried out in pain as he was launched away, flying through a wall and slamming into a steel beam. After that impact, he dropped towards the ground, but before hitting it Cestro closed in and slashed him with his sword, throwing him backwards again.

Billy hit the dirt and rolled a few times, stumbling to his feet despite the amazing pain. He looked around, then noticed Cestro on a platform a story above him. The sight made his blood boil, and gave him a little bit more strength from inside himself.

"Come on, Billy," Cestro offered, dropping his sword. "One free shot. Take it."

"You..." Billy growled, but then leaped forwards and upwards at the Alien Ranger.

Cestro, however, quickly hopped upwards, dodging Billy's attack. Billy barely missed him, and Cestro was able to slam his elbow into the back of Billy's neck, propelling him downwards, through the platform, and into the dirt.

Laughing, Cestro landed on the platform, recovered his sword, then hopped down to the dirt the Blue Ranger was sprawled out in. "Look at you, Billy. You're a failure."

"Stay...away from me," Billy barely managed to say, desperately trying to stand back up.

"Your friends are fighting valiant battles all around us, and here you are face down in the dirt," Cestro continued, stopping right in front of Billy and sheathing his sword on his back. "Just like every other fight."

Billy let out a scream of mixed agony and rage as he pulled himself to his knees and swung a fist at Cestro's gut. The Blue Aquitar Ranger easily caught the attack, and then threw Billy across the site again by that arm. The cyborg Ranger landed in the dirt somewhere else, on his back. This time, he had no more energy. That was it...he was done. He tried one last time to get up, but his body simply wouldn't let him. All he could do was watch in horror as Cestro moved in with the Power Lance in hand.

"You were born a failure, you lived as a failure...and now you will die as a failure," Cestro said, raising the Power Lance above his head, preparing to swing downwards.

"No..." Billy hoarsely coughed out...struggling to keep his eyes open. The worst part was the fact that he knew Cestro was right. This fight really wasn't any different than the others...all this time he thought that he'd become something more...but when faced with the reality, he realized he was just same old weak Billy.

"BILLY!!!" Trini screamed from above them.

Cestro looked up to see the Yellow Ranger leaping downwards at him, then quickly looked to see the Black and Pink Rangers descending from other sides. Finally he glanced in front of himself to see the Red Ranger charging in. Cestro knew better than to attack all four at once. He had to get the hell out of here. Without wasting another second, he stabbed the Power Lance into Billy's chest and bolted into the only direction there was no Ranger coming from.

Zack, Trini, and Kimberly landed on all sides of Billy, while Jason stopped his run next to them.

"Get back here, coward!" Jason screamed, going for his blade blaster...but he knew it was too late. The Alien Ranger was gone. He wanted to pursue, but there was another problem to worry about. He quickly turned and looked down at the fallen Blue Ranger.

The Blue Ranger powers failed, and Billy's suit vanished...along with the Power Lance that had been impaled into him. Quickly the other four Rangers deactivated their own powers, and crowded around him. Jason and Kimberly crouched down by his right side, while Zack and Trini sat by his left.

Billy smiled, looking between his four best friends one last time. "Sorry...everyone..."

"Hang in there, bro!" Jason ordered, looking at the massive damage all over his body. He didn't have a clue what to do.

"It's...too late..." Billy told them, weakly. "This time for real..."

"No, Billy!" Trini screamed, trying to stop the blood flow from his chest, ignoring the shocks she was getting from the sparks all over him. "We lost you this long...we can't lose you again! We can't lose you for good!!!"

"You guys...were the first people...to ever accept me for who I am...who I was..." Billy softly said, a tear forming near one of his cyborg eyes.

"Billy!!!" Kimberly cried out, holding his hand tightly.

"Stop talking like that, man!" Zack told him, doing what he could to help Trini in her obviously hopeless effort.

"Even now...even after I've become this...this monster...you still stand beside me..." Billy continued. "I hate myself...and I hate what I've become...but I love you all..."

"No...no!!!" Trini cried, refusing to believe this was happening.

"Don't talk!" Jason told him. "Save your energy!"

"Thank you, guys..." Billy kept going, fighting desperately to say what he wanted to say. "Thank you for never letting me down...I'm sorry I couldn't be the same way..."

"Please, Billy! Just hold on!!!" Kimberly practically started begging him...watching in horror as his eyes closed.

Trini noticed it first, that his heart was no longer beating. Then Kimberly felt his hand go limp in her grasp, and dropped it in shock. Zack sat back, staring at their fallen comrade. Jason just starred in disbelief as well, unsure of what to do...or say. He was really gone. This time they'd lost him...and there had been nothing any of them could do.

"Oh, God!!!" Kimberly screamed as loud as she could, flinging herself into Jason's arms. Jason just pulled her close, their disputes from before completely forgotten as she sobbed uncontrollably into his chest.

Across from them, Trini was buried in Zack's arms as well..her tears staining his shirt. The two men exchanged helpless and unbelieving looks. They'd never faced a death like this in all their time as Rangers.

"You didn't let us down, Billy," Zack told his friend's lifeless body. "You never did..."

Jason pulled him Kim tighter, fighting back his own tears now. He knew this wasn't the time, and could tell Zack was doing the same. There was still work to do...and they had to be strong.

A hand-held communicator on Jason's belt rang out, and he grabbed it with shaking hands, wondering who the hell was on the other end. The only other one was with Billy, they had them in case they'd gotten separated. "Yea?"

"Jason, it's Trey," the prince of Triforia reported through the line.

"What's wrong?" Jason asked, still holding the sobbing Kimberly close.

"Triforia fell not long after you and Bill left. What little forces I could escape with are in Earth's orbit right now," Trey told him. "Jason, there's too many of their forces. You have to get the Rangers and evacuate."

"We can't abandon Earth, Trey!" Jason yelled into it, but deep down...he knew Trey was right. The battle was lost long before it started.

"We have to regroup and plan a new strategy," Trey said as calmly as possible. It was apparent how stressed he was as well. "Otherwise, everything will fall to them."

"Alright..." Jason agreed, looking to Zack, who nodded...clearly not liking the idea either, but knew there was no alternative.

"We're sending down a ship to get you guys," Trey said. "Gather the Rangers and meet at the rendezvous point they set up. Keep this communicator on you, they'll contact you upon landing."

"Got it...Red out," Jason said.

"Gold out," Trey said, and closed the line.

Jason slowly hooked the communicator to his belt again, looking back down at Billy's body...the grief hitting him again. He was _dead_.

"We'll miss you, Billy," Kim whispered, looking at him as well. "We'll always miss you..."

"It's just not real..." Trini said. "It can't be real."

Just then, though, a deep laughter echoed out above them. Jason and Zack instantly released the girls, and the two of them stood up quickly, to see what idiot with a death wish was laughing over this. To their surprise...it was the first ever White Ranger, in full uniform. Kimberly and Trini stood up behind them, looking to the Ranger standing on a support beam above them, with his arms crossed.

"Tommy...?" Kimberly weakly asked.

"Not quite," a much different voice said. A voice they hadn't heard in many years...but still recognized without a moment's hesitation.

"David!" Jason snarled, taking a step forwards. "You picked a bad time to show up."

"You're telling me," David calmly agreed. "A few minutes earlier and _I_ could have been the one to end his miserable life."

"I'll end yours!" Jason shouted in a blind rage, pulling out his morpher.

"How did you get out of prison?" Zack demanded.

"It's really none of your business," David replied, keeping his arms crossed as he looked down at them.

"You're still just picking up Tommy's scraps," Kimberly told him. "It won't be any different this time."

"Oh, please," David laughed. "I'm not the same insecure little bastard you fought all those years ago. This time, things are different."

"David Whaley..." Trini whispered, shocked that she was looking at him once again. His face was one of many she'd hoped never to see again.

"Go guys!" Jason ordered, unhooking the communicator and handing it to Zack. "I'll deal with him and be right behind you!"

"We're not leaving you, Jason!" Trini snapped. "We've already lost one Ranger and we're not..."

"If you don't get out of here right now then we're going to lose every Ranger on this entire planet!!!" Jason yelled, turning to face the three of them. "That ship is going to be here and if we aren't ready they'll be forced to abandon us! Now get out of here, take Billy, and find all the other Rangers! This is the last time I'm going to tell you!!!!!"

The three of them stepped back, but then nodded. Zack lifted Billy's body up, and quickly ran out of the area, with Trini right behind him. Kimberly stood there for a few more seconds, but then silently ran off after the two of them. Once he was sure they were gone, Jason turned and looked up at David once again. He then held out his morpher and activated it.

"Tyrannosaurus!" he called out, transforming into the Red Ranger once again.

David just laughed and uncrossed his arms, then pulled out Saba. Jason noticed the swords eyes were pitch black, and seemed lifeless. The Red Ranger then materialized the Power Sword into his right hand. The two of them slid into battle stances...keeping their eyes on each other. It was time to end this once and for all.

* * *

**A/N: Like always, let me know what you think. Thanks!**


	18. Ranger Rematch

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: Finally updating this one! As always, a big shout out and thank you to all reviewers. **

* * *

"Help!!!" 

Rocky and Adam looked around, trying to determine where that voice had come from.

"Where are you!?" Rocky screamed at the top of his lungs, unable to locate the source of the voice.

"I'm trapped under all this rubble!!!" the voice shouted back, and Rocky finally noticed the large pile of rocks it was coming from.

Adam watched as Rocky ran over, but was a little hesitant to do the same. The voice had sounded suspiciously Aquitian. Although they were trying to help everyone possible...he really didn't want to take any chances. As Rocky began unstacking the rocks, Adam quickly looked around the streets again. Buildings were destroyed, craters from these giant machines' feet were everywhere, but at least this area was somewhat clear of them by now. He shuddered when he remembered that just meant they were moving on to attack more people, though.

Satisfied after seeing none of the invading forces on this street, Adam turned back to see Rocky unearthing an Aquitian woman. Instantly, the Blue Zeo Ranger took a step backwards.

"No...please!" the woman pleaded, reaching a hand out to him. "They lied to me, I didn't want to invade Earth! I just wanted peace! They locked me up and I escaped...but they attacked me!"

"Be careful, Rocky," Adam warned, studying this woman carefully.

"Alright, it's alright, we're here to help, then," Rocky said, removing the last of the rocks and helping the girl to her feet.

"Thank you, thank you so much," the Aquitian woman said, hugging Rocky and holding him there. "I'm sorry this has happened...but I can help! I want to help...I want to..."

Adam's eyes suddenly widened. She looked slightly different now, probably just a result of age and different clothing, but there was no question that this woman was Cestria. However, if she had managed to trick Billy into moving to Aquitar...then...

"Rocky, look out!!!" Adam yelled, interrupting Cestria's rambling.

"What?" Rocky asked, looking from her to his best friend.

That proved to be a mistake, as Cestria instantly seized that moment to draw a concealed dagger from underneath her shirt. Rocky looked back down to her quickly, but it was too late to act. Cestria drove the blade right into his stomach, causing Rocky's eyes to widen as he coughed up a bit of blood.

"Rocky!!!" Adam screamed, charging towards the two of them.

At the sound of Adam's voice, Cestria ripped the blade from the Ranger's gut and shoved him backwards. Rocky hit the ground with a thud, and didn't move at all. When Adam closed in, Cestria swung high, aiming the blade at the side of his face. Adam easily blocked that attack by catching her wrist, and when she tried to punch him with her other arm, he caught that fist as well. Cestria struggled desperately, trying to get her arms free of Adam's grasp, but he didn't let go. So, instead, she brought up her right knee, aiming between the legs this time. Adam expected that to come, and released her free arm while shoving her backwards, causing her to stumble and come nowhere near landing that attack. After that, he steered her wrist down towards her hip, driving her own dagger into her side. With a scream of pain, Cestria collapsed in Adam's grip. The unmorphed Ranger just shoved her aside and ran towards his fallen friend.

"Tanya!!! Kat!!! Tommy!!!" Adam yelled as he got close to Rocky. "We need help!!!"

"I'm alright..." Rocky mumbled, with his eyes closed tightly while Adam dropped to his knees next to him. "I guess I had that one coming."

"You never could turn down a girl," Adam remarked, ripping Rocky's tank top in half, and then using it to stop the blood flow. "Even one with her brain on the outside of her head."

"Oh man, it was Aisha instead of you in one of my dreams..." Rocky mumbled, causing Adam to roll his eyes.

"Guys!!!" Tanya screamed as she ran over to the two of them, with Kat and Tommy right beside her.

"Get her! Get Cestria!" Adam quickly shouted to them, pointing to the Aquitian woman who was stumbling back to her feet.

Tommy and Tanya instantly redirected their run towards her. Cestria started to pull the blade out of her leg to use against them, but it hurt way too much, so she found herself defenseless when Tanya tackled her back onto the pavement.

"Oh, Rocky! What happened!?" Kat asked, kneeling down on the other side of him.

Instead of answering, Rocky just started laughing. Adam and Kat shot each other quick bewildered looks before focusing their attention back on him.

"Now I really do have a hole in my stomach!" Rocky said as he laughed, but then winced in pain and stopped.

"Shut up! You're hurt!" Kat snapped, reaching down and undoing Rocky's belt.

"What the hell are you doing!?" Adam asked, looking at Kat.

"Man, I knew this was just a bad dream," Rocky mumbled.

Kat smiled as she wrapped the belt around his waist, holding the blood soaked shirt tightly against the wound. Leave it Rocky to still be cracking jokes even at a time like this. It sure helped ease everyone else. She knew they needed to get him out of here, and this would be the best way to stop the blood flow while they moved him.

"You guys!" Kimberly shouted, suddenly.

Tanya and Tommy looked up from having subdued Cestria, and saw Kimberly, Trini, and Zack running right at them. Tommy frowned upon noticing the motionless cyborg Zack was carrying.

"What happened!?" Tommy demanded, knowing there had been a fight at that construction site. He'd caught sight of the Black Ranger up in the air, firing an attack from his Power Ax, and besides that was aware of the Alien Rangers gathering there after seeing Jason and the Phantom land there. "Where's Jason!?"

"He stayed behind!" Zack said, looking down to Cestria. "Who's this?"

"Old friend," Tommy said dismissively, much more interested in what Jason was up to. "Why did he stay behind!?"

"Another old friend," Zack explained. "David decided to make an appearance."

Tommy frowned, and opened his mouth to say something.

"Whaley," Trini quickly clarified. "He's got the White Ranger powers now."

"Dammit!" Tommy shouted. "And you let Jason fight him alone!?"

"There's some other things to worry about, here!" Zack snapped back at his former leader.

"Triforia's sending a ship down to pick us and the other Rangers up," Kimberly informed them. "We've got to retreat!"

"Aww, man..." Tommy mumbled, rubbing his hand over his face. "We need to get everyone together, then. Jason, Aisha...and the others are around here somewhere."

"I'm worried about Aisha..." Trini admitted, looking down.

"Why, what's wrong?" Tanya quickly asked.

"I fought Tideus...he's free," Trini said, crossing her arms as she thought. "I hope she's alright..."

"What happened to him?" Tommy asked, pointing to the man slumped over Zack's shoulder.

"It's the Phantom," Zack said, deciding now wasn't the time to break the real news. "He didn't make it."

Tommy closed his eyes for only a few seconds, then snapped then open again. "I'm going after Jason and Aisha! The rest of you find the Rangers and find that landing craft. We'll be right behind you."

"I'm coming with you," Zack quickly said, setting the Phantom down. Now that the news was spread, there wasn't a single reason he shouldn't be back there fighting alongside Jason. "You'll need help."

"Alright, fair enough," Tommy admitted, knowing that if David was involved he just might need a little more assistance. Better to be safe than sorry. "Can the rest of you handle that?"

"Of course," Kimberly said, although she clearly didn't like the plan. Shoot, who would? But it was the only thing they could do...

"Here's the communicator," Zack said, unclipping it from his belt and then tossing it to Adam. "They'll tell you where to meet when they land."

"You got it," Adam said as he caught it and hooked it to his belt. "Let's go, Rangers. We have to find everyone else!"

Adam picked up the Phantom's body, while Tanya pulled Cestria to her feet. Meanwhile, Kimberly and Kat helped Rocky to his feet, and as they moved to get the other Rangers, Tommy and Zack sprinted back towards the construction site.

* * *

Jason and David held their weapons ready as they stared each other down, both silently analyzing their opponent's stance, looking for a weakness of some kind. Not that it mattered much, though. Jason had a feeling this one was going to be a little crazier than he was used to...and that wasn't good. 

"David! I don't have time for this!" Jason shouted up to him. "The people of Angel Grove need my help...the Rangers' help!"

"Too bad I'm not offering!" David shouted back down. "I don't care about this city!"

"They'll take over the planet! There won't be anywhere to hide!" Jason tried to reason with him. "If you had any sense you'd be out there fighting them, not me!"

"Shut up!" David screamed. "You and the other Rangers...that's all that matters to me! I'll deal with those weaklings when this is settled!"

"You really are crazy..." Jason mumbled.

"Enough!" David yelled down at his enemy. "This won't be a repeat of last time! This time I will kill you!"

Jason opened his mouth to say something, but when David leaped downwards at him...he changed his mind. After letting David get close to him, Jason leaped straight up, causing the White Ranger to slam hard into the ground, kicking up a lot of dirt. David didn't waste a second, and quickly leaped upwards after the Red Ranger. Jason switched his sword into his left hand while drawing his blade blaster in his right, and quickly readied its pistol mode. David noticed Jason readying the gun, and in response held the tiger head of Saba upwards. Both Rangers fired their energy blasts at the same, and as a result the attacks collided in midair, causing a very large explosion. David crossed his arms over his face as he sailed upwards through it, unable to stop himself. Jason landed on a higher story, holstered his blade blaster, and watched as David came out of the blast, landing across from him entirely unharmed.

David barely had time to ready his sword again before Jason leaped at him. The Red Ranger swung his sword at David's throat when he closed in, and the new White Ranger barely ducked the attack in time. As he straightened up, David swung Saba upwards, aiming at Jason's chest. Jason parried that blow and countered with a heavy overhead slash, which David easily blocked. Not wasting a second, Jason brought his right leg up and slammed his foot into David's stomach, sending the White Ranger rolling down a halfway finished set of stairs.

David managed to stop his roll halfway down the stairs, and quickly stood back up. Jason, meanwhile, dove straight down after him, going headfirst for greater velocity in his attack. Reacting instantly, David dropped flat on his back once again and kicked both legs upwards, connecting with Jason's gut and throwing the Red Ranger through some drywall. David quickly got back on his feet, though, and leaped through the hole in the wall, chasing his foe.

Jason quickly regained his composure as he flew through the air, and landed on a narrow steel beam after a quick flip. He only had a second to balance himself, because David landed on it not far from him at all, and seemed to have little trouble adjusting himself. The two Rangers stepped in close to each other, and began to trade sword blow after sword blow, neither being able to drive the other back. This time they were evenly matched, and in straight combat neither was able to gain any ground.

Finally, David got fed up with the swordplay, and swung a hard kick at Jason's side. The Red Ranger braced himself, though, and managed to catch David's leg under his arm. Then, with a quick spin, he threw David right off the beam. The White Ranger fell about two stories before landing on a tiled floor, still a several stories above the ground.

Jason leaped down after him, getting tired of this big construction site. It was just one large obstacle course, and he needed a quick end to this one. He landed in front of David as soon as the man had recovered, and the two both swung their swords as fast and hard as possible. The clanging of the blades echoed throughout the entire area, but instead of pulling their weapons back, they pressed them against each other as hard as possible. Jason's Power Sword began glowing with red energy, while Saba became engulfed in a white glow.

The two men remained perfectly silent, each knowing the time for words was long over. Instead they both shifted their footing and pressed the blades harder together. Their two respective energy colors soon began covering them as well as their blades, and then began forming a small vortex around them. They were putting everything their respective powers would let them in this final struggle.

Then it happened. A bright explosion filled the entire floor area, launching both of them backwards with impressive velocity. Jason found himself demorphed as he hit a steel support beam, and then slumped to the floor, with his morpher hitting the ground a few yards away. The White Ranger powers, however, were far more durable due to their more recent design, and David found himself still in uniform after sliding back a good bit. When he stood back up and recovered Saba, he smiled upon seeing that Jason was dazed from his impact with the vertical bar. Slowly he began moving towards him for the kill.

Tommy and Zack ran into the construction site, and quickly looked around. Their eyes trailed upwards, and they spotted the scene happening far above them.

"Jason!!!" Tommy yelled out instinctively, catching David's attention.

David turned and looked over the edge to see two more of the Rangers he'd sworn he'd kill. When he saw Zack drawing a morpher, he quickly pointed Saba towards them and opened fire. The blast hit the ground between the two of them, and threw them in separate directions. David then looked back to Jason, and saw him reaching for his own morpher with his right hand. Knowing that he couldn't stop the two of them, David instantly re-aimed Saba, and fired a blast straight into Jason's hand.

Jason screamed in pain and agony as he the blast connected with his hand. The types of attacks fired from Ranger weaponry were far too powerful for any normal human to handle, so Jason found that he couldn't even move his hand anymore after that blast. That terrified him, because due to the smoke he couldn't see his hand at all, and the smell of burning flesh didn't help comfort him at all. The intense pain proved to be too much, though, and Jason couldn't keep himself conscious long enough to see the damage.

Zack cursed for the hundredth time as he reached for his morpher, having dropped it in between two large machines after the blast had hit. He didn't have time for this...he had to get up there and help Jason. He shot a quick glance over his shoulder to see that David was refocusing his attention on him and Tommy...but he didn't care. Hopefully Tommy could keep him busy, because this was going nowhere without this morpher.

Tommy stood up, a bit shaken from that close call. He shook his head and looked back up to David, his eyes instantly locking onto Saba. He shot a glance to Zack, then back to David, only to see him aiming Saba once more.

"Saba!!!" Tommy screamed at the top of his lungs, as an idea struck in his head. It was a stretch and a chance...but there wasn't a whole lot of choices, here.

"Hm?" David mumbled, looking down to Tommy. What was he up to...?

"Saba! Wake up!!!" Tommy continued. "You have fallen to the darkness! Listen to me! It's me, Tommy! Remember your purpose!"

"Nice try, Tommy!" David laughed. "But these powers are mine now!"

"NO!" Saba suddenly said, his eyes turning from their empty black color back to normal.

"Huh?" David said in disbelief, looking to the sword.

"No, you are not the White Ranger! You are not worthy to command these pure powers!" Saba bellowed in a voice of anger. "I reject you!"

There was suddenly a bright flash of white light, which forced Tommy to shield his eyes. David was expelled out of the powers, and flew backwards in his normal state, while the morpher fell to the floor where he had been standing. David, meanwhile, was thrown off the edge of the platform he and Jason were on and fell over five stories, screaming the whole way down.

Tommy was already running for the stairs so he could get up to Jason, although he noticed when David's screams stopped after a satisfying thud. It barely took him anytime to scale the stairs, then leap across a couple of platforms to the one that Jason was lying motionless on. Instantly he ran to his friend to see if he was alright.

The damage was far worse than he had imagined. Jason's entire right hand past the wrist was completely gone without a trace. Jason himself was unconscious, likely passed out from shock. Tommy winced at the sight, and at the blood pouring out. Some of the wound was burned significantly, blocking the flow of blood, but even more of it was open and running freely. Tommy acted fast, though, and pulled out the knife he always kept on himself. He then cut off one of his shirt sleeves, and tightened it around Jason's wrist, constricting the blood flow. That would do until they got him into orbit and the Triforians could do something about it.

"Bro, I'm sorry..." Tommy whispered, folding the knife shut and pocketing it once more. "This is completely out of control..."

Zack landed on the platform, now in morphed into the Black Ranger. Instantly he ran over, and saw Jason's injury.

"Dammit!" Zack said, flinching a little at the sight. "Not good!"

"I know, I know!" Tommy said, shaking his head. This was just too overwhelming. Too many injuries...too many casualties...and now they were being forced to retreat to space?

"Jason, come in!" a voice said through the communicator on his belt.

Tommy quickly pulled it off and answered it himself. "This is Tommy Oliver. Jason Scott is injured, what's going on?"

"This is the Triforian landing crew," the guy on the other end replied. "We're just a few blocks from you and we have the other Rangers that were in the city. You need to get here right now or we'll be forced to leave without you."

"There's still one more outside of town!" Tommy replied. "I can't leave without her!"

"Tommy, we have no choice! If the Serpents find us..." the Triforian captain began.

"Tommy," Trey himself said over the line, cutting the other Triforian off. "Jason and the Phantom's ship is in Angel Grove Park. Do you think you can get it to work on your own?"

"Yea, of course!" Tommy said, feeling a wave of relief run through him. "That's close to my place anyway!"

"Great, they'll take off and the four of you can use that," Trey said. "You'll still have to hurry, though, we can't hold the fleet off up here for much longer, but it should give you enough time."

"No, wait!" Tommy quickly said, looking to Zack for a second. "Jason's hurt badly and needs medical attention. Zack's gonna meet up with you guys and head up, now. Aisha and I will take the other ship."

"Alright, but hurry!" the captain said. "We can't wait for long!"

"You got it!" Tommy said, then looked up to Zack.

"Man..." Zack slow said, with hesitation apparent in his voice.

"You know it's the only way," Tommy quickly said, running over and scooping up the red and white morphers.

"Just be careful," Zack said as he picked up Jason. "If Tideus was out there it might be a trap, and she might be injured."

"You just worry about him," Tommy said, hooking the red morpher to his belt and throwing Zack the communicator.

Zack nodded as he caught it, and without another word the two went their separate ways. While Zack called in for the exact location of the ship, Tommy leaped right off the platform. By the time he had landed he was in his familiar White Ranger outfit once again. Instead of taking the time to get used to it again, though, the Ranger charged out of the construction site and into the city streets.

* * *

**A/N: And so Tommy and Zack are on the move...will they both make it? Find out next time...(and please leave a review! Please?)**


	19. Day of Darkness

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: Alright, here's another update! Thanks again to all who reviewed!**

* * *

"It is good to be with you again, White Ranger!" Saba said from Tommy's belt as the White Ranger charged through the city streets. "I apologize for allowing myself to fall to the darkness like that." 

"Don't worry about it, Saba!" Tommy replied as he ran. "It's just good to have you back!"

Tommy slid to a stop in one intersection, turned left, and began running down that road. However, he shot a quick glance over his shoulder...and what he saw behind him made him slow to a jog, then a complete stopped. The White Ranger turned around, seeing a yellow painted Serpent stomping towards him. Most of the others hadn't had any paint, but Aurico's had been all red...meaning that this must be Tideus.

"So, you're still alive!" Tideus's voice said over the Zord's PA system as he brought the machine to a stop, allowing him to look down at Tommy.

Tommy shifted back a step, trying to think what to do. He didn't have time for this at all, and even if he did, he couldn't win alone. He had to think of something...

"Yea, and you're still a freak!" Tommy shouted up at the massive Zord, not knowing what else to do right now.

Tideus just laughed, and flipped a few switches inside the cockpit. Instantly, the Zord began charging a massive ball of energy in it's mouth. Tommy saw it, and took a few more steps backwards, trying to think what to do. Finally, he decided that the best plan of action would be to simply get the hell out of here, so he turned and bolted down the street as fast as his Ranger enhanced legs would allow him.

As soon as he began his retreat, Tideus released a massive beam of energy from his Zord, which began to tear up the streets behind Tommy as it chased him down. The White Ranger accelerated to a full speed sprint, ducking and dodging random cars that were launched over his head, and flipping over a bus that was sprawled out across the street.

Tommy glanced up at the sound of several jets flying overhead, just in time to see a couple missiles connecting with an airborne Serpent. After that, a couple of F22s shot past the flying Zord, which turned to pursue them. The White Ranger gritted his teeth at the sight, but found some comfort in the fact that the military was picking up the evacuation where the Rangers had been forced to leave off.

The White Ranger redirected his attention to the streets in front of him, continuing his run back to his apartment.

* * *

Kyle rubbed his eyes yet again, looking around the control room he was still in once more. Refugees from all over the city and surrounding suburbs were being piled into the base, and due to the sheer number they were overflowing into a lot of the rooms, including this one. The loud racket made it hard to hear himself think, let alone come up with a decent plan. 

Kyle turned his head at the sign of a very familiar face entering the room...Captain Alan White, head of security for this base. The guy had been around since the first monster attack on Angel Grove, and was a very well respected veteran...yet the look on his face showed that he too, was completely overwhelmed.

"How you doing?" Kyle asked, looking sideways to the man.

"This is too much..." Alan replied, shaking his head. "We got men coming and going, evacuating everyone we can get while trying to fight those things off, but there's way too many of them."

"No sign of the Rangers, either?" Kyle asked a bit skeptically.

"We've only heard rumors of them being around," Alan stated. "We haven't seen any, and if they're in the city they haven't been able to do a damn thing, either."

Kyle tapped the side of his head, letting out a sigh.

"General Griffin, sir!!!" a technician at one of the computer terminals screamed. "We have an enemy craft approaching the base!"

Kyle and Alan quickly glanced to each other before forcing their way through the crowd to get to the technician, arriving at the same time as General Griffin. They looked at the screen to see a red dot approaching their position at a very rapid rate.

"Not good," Alan said. "We don't have any armed personnel here...they're all out evacuating the city!"

"We couldn't call them back in time to fight that thing off, either..." Kyle mumbled. "It's moving way too fast."

"We'll have to get everyone into the underground shelter," General Griffin said. "Maddox, White...get to it."

"Sir, with all due respect, that won't do any good," Alan quickly said. "Those things pack far too much firepower. We'd just be saving him energy by getting in one place like that."

"Well, what the hell do you think we should do then, captain!?" Griffin snapped, getting right in the other man's face. "What can we do against these things!?"

"We have to fight!" a voice shouted from behind them.

The three men turned to see a young man with dirty blond hair looking right at them, his clothes beat up and covered with dirt, not to mention a few scratches on him.

"Who the hell do you think you are?" General Griffin demanded in a low voice.

"My name's Chance Hammond...I just got pulled out of the city," the man said.

"Right, you're a civilian!" General Griffin said. "You're only in this room because there's not enough space anywhere else! I need you to be quiet while we work this whole thing out! Okay!?"

"He's right, general," Alan said, looking back to the screen.

"White, you're kidding me, right?" Griffin said, dumbfounded by that statement. "What can we hope to accomplish by fighting something like that!?"

"General, it's our only chance!" Chance pleaded. "We can't sit around and wait for the Rangers! If they aren't here now we have assume they won't be coming! We have to make a stand for ourselves! The Rangers can't rescue us every time, and if we wait for them, everyone here _will_ die!"

Griffin was stunned to say the least. He took a step back and blinked a couple times, then looked to Alan for some kind of sign. The man had a serious face, and gave a simple nod of agreement. He then turned his head to look at Kyle, who was surprisingly grinning.

"We've got the guns," Kyle said. "Just not the soldiers to shoot them."

Griffin took a deep breath, then nodded. "Get every able bodied man geared up and on surface, Alan...you'll lead the defensive forces up top. Kyle...you'll...well, you'll be needed up top, too."

"Sounds good to me," Kyle said, still grinning. _What a day..._

"Good luck, men," General Griffin concluded his orders with a nod. "I'll be right here on these terminals and in touch."

"Alright, everyone!" Kyle shouted to the crowd. "We're making a stand! The alien invaders are approaching our position, and we have no choice but to fight!"

Surprisingly, there was a loud cheer from the refugees. Griffin crossed his arms as Kyle and Alan began to gather up everyone that was able to help. Maybe they had a chance, after all...

* * *

"Kimberly! You can't go!" Trini said, holding her friend's shoulders tightly. 

"I have to, Trini!" Kimberly desperately screamed back, trying to break free of Trini's grip as well as get past Justin and Carlos, who were blocking the exit to the transport ship they were on. "I can't leave my husband to die at their hands! Not to mention our families and other friends! What about them!?"

"We don't have a choice, Kim!" Kat tried to explain from her seat next to Rocky, although she didn't like the situation either. Who would?

"I'm sorry, Kim. We aren't moving," Justin said in a stern voice.

"MOVE!!!" Zack suddenly shouted from behind them, causing Justin and Carlos to instantly step aside.

Ashley gasped as Zack helped Jason into the ship, and set him down on a random bench seat. Rocky groaned from where he was lying, looking over to the other wounded Ranger. This sucked.

"What happened to him?" Kimberly asked as Zack demorphed.

"The fight didn't go like he planned," Zack simply said, then called ahead to the pilot in the cockpit. "We're all here! Let's go!!!"

The second he'd said that, the ship powered up and began to lift off, beginning it's retreat into space.

"Wait! What about Tommy!?" Kat frantically asked, standing up.

"Zack, you gotta tell them to stop!" Kimberly agreed, looking to her long time friend with a face of worry.

"Tommy's taking Jason and...the Phantom's ship," Zack explained. "Aisha's too far away for us to wait here. He'll be fine."

Kat hesitantly sat back down, accepting but not liking that answer.

"Jason...you're going to be alright..." Ashley whispered to her unconscious cousin.

Zack practically collapsed into a seat, while Trini sat beside him and wrapped an arm around him. One by one the other standing Rangers took their seats as well, and silence fell over the room. Even Cestria was quiet, out of fear of what would happen to her if for no other reason. Adam had been sitting beside her the whole time, and had already slammed her into a wall once when she'd had the audacity to laugh at the wound she'd given Rocky.

Soon enough they were out of the atmosphere...and away from the planet they had completely failed to defend.

* * *

"Aisha!!!" Tommy shouted as he sprinted through his apartment complex, worried when he didn't hear an answer from his open door, which was just a bit further down the hall. "Aisha!!! Aish- oh God!!!" 

The sight was horrible. It made him stop dead in his tracks as he entered his apartment. The shotgun he'd left behind with her was in two pieces, the apartment was wrecked, furniture trashed, holes all in the wall...and blood was everywhere, coating the entire room. However, Tommy noticed none of that. All he saw was Aisha's body lying on the floor...stabbed, beaten, and cut all over. She had never stood a chance.

"Aisha..." Tommy whispered, limping over to her and falling to his knees beside her. "Please...no..._please_!!!"

He brought his trembling hand up to check for a pulse, but there was nothing there. She was cold and motionless...she was dead.

"NO!!!" Tommy screamed, pulling off his helmet and bringing his right hand up to his face. This was too much...just way too much. How had the Rangers fallen so far? Tommy did everything he could to fight off the tears threatening to creep out...now wasn't the time. "I'm sorry, Aisha...I'm so, so, sorry."

A massive wave of guilt surged through Tommy. He had been the one to leave her alone armed only with a single firearm. He should have realized that the others would come to rescue Tideus, and with their morphed powers there really wasn't a thing Aisha could have done. Looking at her body once again, Tommy became painfully aware that it hadn't been a quick death either...they had really dragged it out for her. _Savages._

"Tom...Tommy?" a quiet voice whispered, causing Tommy to jump a little.

He removed his hand from his face, looking down to Aisha...only to see she was still silent and motionless. That meant there was someone else in the room...! Tommy quickly scanned the room, and noticed a head poking out above the kitchen counter. In a flash, Tommy was back on his feet with Saba in his hand. He pointed the sword at this person, only realizing who it was after she'd screamed and fallen backwards.

"Hayley!?" Tommy said in disbelief as he spotted his study partner. What the hell was she doing here? It dawned on Tommy after a second of thought. They were supposed to be studying for a big test that was coming up...she was in his history class at college. He'd completely forgotten about that when Tideus had betrayed him, and had called the Rangers without canceling their own appointment. Dismissing that thought, Tommy quickly hooked Saba back to his belt and moved over to where Hayley lay trembling on the floor. "Are you okay? You're not hurt are you?"

"You're...a Power Ranger...?" Hayley asked from the floor, looking up at him.

"I'm a...?" Tommy slowly began to repeat, then looked to the helmet still in his hand. _Way to go, Oliver. You're sure on a roll today..._

"What's...what's happening, Tommy?" Hayley asked quietly, her voice trembling with fear.

Tommy realized that she'd been crying all this time before he got here. He dropped to a kneel beside her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Hayley...I need you to tell me what happened here."

"She...she was there when I arrived," Hayley explained. "Her and that...that thing. Then some other ones came, and she told me to hide. They never saw me...but I heard so much screaming and laughing...and then when it stopped...she was dead and they...they were gone..."

Tommy tightened his grip on his helmet as much as he could. Aquitar would pay for this...

"Hayley...Hayley we have to get out of here," Tommy said, standing up and putting his helmet back on. He didn't have a choice...space travel might be a bit traumatic, but he sure as hell couldn't leave her behind.

"Where to?" Hayley asked. "What's happening?"

"I'll explain everything later," Tommy said as he walked over and gently picked up Aisha's body. After that, he nudged his head towards his shoulder, hoping she'd get the idea. "Hop on."

Hayley slowly walked over to Tommy, and wrapped her arms around his neck. She then hoisted herself up on his back, holding herself in place. As soon an she was secure, Tommy ran out of the apartment as fast as he possibly could. Time was running short...

* * *

**A/N: That's all for now! Leave a review and let me know what you think!**


	20. Most Desperate Hour

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: Wow, really? Again? Yea, again. Sorry everyone but it's been a roller coaster ride out there in the real world. Like I said though, my stories will not go unfinished and I'm getting back into the swing of this. So at long last, here's an update!**

* * *

Tommy and Hayley both entered the small transport ship, the White Ranger setting Aisha's body down on a random bench seat before moving up to the controls. While Hayley was standing above them and looking them over, he wasted no time taking a seat and flipping a few switches.

"You know how to fly this thing?" Hayley asked the Ranger, looking a little skeptical as she took a seat next to him.

"Not at all," Tommy casually said, turning a few knobs as the engines fired up. "I'm just guessing."

Hayley turned and looked at him in disbelief, but Tommy didn't even notice. Luckily for him, the ship seemed to be based on the Zeo technology, so it was just as if he was back in his old Zeozord once again. After adjusting a few more settings Tommy got the ship into the air, and soon enough he was flying them towards outer space.

Fortunately for them, there was no resistance from the Serpents during their ascent...unfortunately, it was because they were all busy tearing apart Angel Grove and it's neighboring cities. Without the Rangers, they would be able to overrun the entire earth pretty quickly.

Tommy just couldn't believe it. All those years of work and sacrifice had been laid to waste over the course of just a few hours. Earth had fallen, and there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it. What really hurt was the fact that the Aquitian Rangers were behind it all. But what hurt most of all was the weight of responsibility he felt over the matter. This had been his job, his task. He had been tracking down Serpentera to make sure nothing...well, nothing like this ever happened.

_So much for that._

"Tommy?" Hayley quietly said, snapping him back to attention.

"What's wrong?" Tommy quickly asked, looking out the cockpit as they left the atmosphere. Ahead he could see the Triforian command ship, and a few Serpents keeping their distance

"Since when?" Hayley asked simply, watching him fly.

"Since when, what?" Tommy replied, confused and distracted as he looked for the radio. It didn't take him too long to find it though, and he adjusted a few settings and activated it.

"Since when have you been a...a Ranger..." Hayley clarified, trailing off as she decided to just let him fly.

"Since the beginning," Tommy shortly answered before speaking into the radio. "Trey, are you there? It's Tommy."

"Tommy?! Thank the heavens!" Trey's voice instantly replied back through. "Dock on the bottom bay, and make it quick. We have to leave."

"Start the retreat, I'll be on board soon," Tommy replied, disgusted with himself as he spoke.

"Copy that," Trey replied, and Tommy and Hayley could see the ship beginning to turn only a few seconds later.

Tommy flew his unarmed ship past the Serpents, which weren't paying much attention to him anyway, with their attention focused on the large Triforian ship that had already repelled them with relative ease. Of course, with numbers to spare, there was no doubt more would be along shortly. The White Ranger flipped a few more switches and the ship took off at a much faster speed with the help of it's temporary boosters, leaving the Aquitian ships behind and violently slamming into the docking bay of Trey's command ship. Tommy casually flipped a few more switches and turned a few knobs, powering down the ship while several workers in the docking bay ran around in disarray as a result of that landing.

"What...what..." Hayley mumbled, sitting back in her seat and holding on for dear life still.

"Come on, we gotta go!" Tommy quickly replied, lowering the landing bay and quickly standing up, pulling Hayley right out of her seat as he moved.

* * *

As the doors from the main base opened, people flooded out onto the tarmac of the NASADA base, armed with whatever weapons they'd been able to find. Many were armed with only M16s, while others had been able to find rocket launchers or other more explosive weapons. This ragtag force spread out across the area where the Red Rangers had first united, and where this thing had all begun.

"Get out wide, get out wide!" Captain White ordered to the small force of civilians, waving his left arm around. "Don't group together!"

"Up above, up above!" Kyle yelled while in a full sprint, but pointed upwards.

Everyone looked up and saw it coming in...a Serpent with a bright blue paint scheme, unlike the metallic finish the majority of the invasion force had. Everyone knew the difference in color had to stand for something, but they were all too preoccupied to care what exactly.

The blue Serpent slammed down in the middle of the area, allowing itself to be surrounded. It stood on it's hind legs and opened it's mouth wide, firing a massive burst of energy at the small force, eliminating several people with one swift blast.

"Holy shit!" Chance screamed, almost dropping his weapon as he stumbled backwards. Clearly he was just speaking the thoughts of many that were there, as everyone seemed a little stunned by that incredible display of power.

"Open fire!!!" Captain White ordered, shouldering his M16 and unloading on the mechanical monster.

Kyle and a large number of the civilians all opened fire with whatever weapons they had as well, while there were a few that simply dropped their guns and ran. Still, it was apparent that the attacker simply wasn't prepared for a display of force like this, especially the rockets that were pounding it from all sides.

"General Griffin!" Kyle shouted into a handheld radio after depleting two clips of ammo. "The big stuff's working! We need more heavy weapons!"

"You guys are right next to everything we have!" General Griffin replied back through the radio. "Just keep hitting him, I'm not tracking any more of those things on their way."

"Great...thanks," Kyle mumbled as he clipped the radio to his belt and reloaded his rifle.

"Over here!!" a couple guys shouted, and Kyle looked over to see them setting up some fifty caliber turrets they had found.

As soon as the turrets were ready they unloaded on the Serpent with everything they had, stunning it with the heavy suppressive fire. Almost instantly the Serpent turned and unleashed another blast from it's mouth, decimating the turrets and killing all the men who had been near them.

"Unreal..." Chance whispered, stepping up next to Kyle with an RPG in his hands. "How can we stop something that...that powerful."

"This was your idea, wasn't it?" Kyle remarked, watching the Serpent carefully. Then he saw it, the opportunity he needed. As the Serpent unleashed another blast at it's attackers, Kyle slung his rifle over his shoulder and grabbed the RPG from the youth's hands before he had a chance to say a word.

Kyle ran out several yards in a full sprint, circle strafing the massive machine. It opened it's mouth once again, and Kyle stopped running, instantly shouldering and aiming the weapon. He fired a rocket quickly, and true to his aim it went straight into the Serpent's mouth.

As the energy beam exploded on impact with the exploding rocket, the massive Zord began to spark and fume, all while shaking drastically from it's insides exploding. While most of the crowd out there began letting out cheers and celebrations, Kyle simply dropped the rocket launcher and readied his rifle once again, resuming his sideways strafing. He had a suspicion about the source of this machine, given it's color scheme, and he knew if he was right then this wasn't over yet.

Sure enough, just as Kyle suspected, a blue figure leaped from the Zord just as it exploded. There was a collective gasp from the scattered civilians as everyone recognized what was clearly a Ranger sailing through the sky and drawing his sword, landing gracefully on the tarmac...and facing Kyle.

"...Oh shit..." Kyle whispered to himself.

Kyle stopped moving and held down the trigger to his rifle, opening fire on the Ranger as he closed in. The Blue Ranger moved in, deflecting every bullet with lightning fast sword swings. Kyle braced himself as the Ranger neared, and with a perfectly timed move he swung the stock of gun upwards, catching the Blue Ranger right in the chin and knocking him off his feet.

Kyle studied the Ranger for a second as he hit the ground, running the uniform design through his head. "Blue...black stripe...katana...Aquitar! Cestro!?"

Cestro popped his head up, looking back at Kyle, who in turn widened his eyes, startled. He tried to aim his rifle back down at the Alien Ranger to deliver the finishing shot, but Cestro had already had enough time to recover. The Aquitian swept his leg out and tripped Kyle, sending him straight to the ground with a thud. Kyle reached for his rifle, but Cestro put his foot through the sling, preventing Kyle from reclaiming it. Just as Cestro went to swing his sword at Kyle, though, Captain White stepped up and delivered a powerful punch to the side of his helmet.

"Damn, what's that suit made of?" Captain White mumbled, rubbing his fist for a second while drawing his pistol.

The Blue Alien Ranger recovered and tried to swing at his newest attacker, but Kyle acted fast and crossed his rifle's sling over itself, tightening it around Cestro's leg. With a quick pull, Kyle pulled the Ranger's left foot out from under him, and caused him to faceplant onto the ground and drop his sword. Captain White reached down to pull off Cestro's helmet, allowing him an easy shot at the back of his head, but Cestro kicked Kyle away and quickly stood, punching White away as well.

Before he could recover his sword, though, Cestro was distracted by a third attacker. Chance Hammond came charging up and leaped at the Ranger, delivering a powerful jumpkick. Unfortunately, an unmorphed human against a morphed Ranger wasn't a fair fight, and Chance wasn't able to even budge him. Cestro returned the attack with a punch to the face, sending Chance backwards several feet. The next thing the Ranger knew, however, he had gunfire coming at him from the side. Kyle had recovered and opened fire, and Cestro barely moved aside and grabbed his sword in time to survive. Unfortunately for him, he had put enough range between himself and the other three that everyone else opened fire as well. Frustrated, the Ranger leaped backwards, in full retreat. After a few large hops, deflecting bullets as he moved, Cestro leaped over the large wall and was gone, just like that.

"You alright, Alan?" Kyle asked, pulling Captain White to his feet, while still keeping the rifle aimed in the direction Cestro had left.

"What the hell? That was a Power Ranger!" Captain White bellowed in a rage, recovering his dropped weapons.

"I had a hunch they might be behind it," Kyle replied, finally lowering his gun. "But I can't understand why."

"We need to let the general know," White simply replied, waving everyone back into the shelter. "Good work, Kyle. You too, kid."

"Thanks..." Chance said, heading back inside with the others.

Kyle just looked out in the direction Cestro had retreated to once again...then shook his head and ran back inside along with everyone else.

* * *

"Tommy!" Trey shouted as he met with the White Ranger and his human companion in the halls of the ship. After insuring the retreat was well underway and the ship was well on it's way to safety, he had run off to see the status of the Earthen Rangers. The sight of Tommy holding Aisha's body didn't make it look like he had good news to tell. "What happened!? Is everyone alright?"

"Aisha's dead," Tommy answered quietly, hanging her body to a medical worker. "The Phantom, too. Set course for Aquitar."

"Are you insane?" Trey asked in surprise.

"We haven't heard from Billy since he goes there, and then this happens!?" Tommy yelled, agitated by Trey's response. "We have to rescue him, there's no telling what..."

"Billy's dead, too," Trey interrupted, silencing Tommy instantly. "I found out not long ago..."

"...Are...are you sure?" Tommy barely was able to say, while Hayley put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Is the source trustworthy?"

"Pretty trustworthy," Trey solemnly answered while turning his head away, unable to make eye contact with Tommy...but he had made a promise that he intended to keep. "I'm sorry."

Tommy just lowered his head, and clenched his left fist.

"What about the others?" Trey asked, trying to keep Tommy focused.

"Jason's wounded badly, and Rocky's not in the best of shape either," Tommy replied.

"The Rangers?" a medic standing nearby replied. "We're treating them now."

"Good, where are the others?" Trey quickly turned his questions to medic.

"In the lounge," she replied. "The Aquitian prisoner was moved to a holding room, as well."

"Prisoner?" Trey asked, turning back to Tommy.

"Cestria. She attacked and we got her," Tommy replied. "Hopefully she can answer a few questions."

"Good, good," Trey replied. "Let's regroup with the Rangers and debrief, then question her. Come on."

Trey swiftly moved down the hall, followed by all the medics with them. Tommy looked back at Hayley, who simply handed him his White Ranger helmet. Tommy was still shaking with adrenaline, and wasn't quite comfortable powering down just yet, so he just took the helmet in one hand and wrapped his other arm around Hayley's shoulder.

"I'm sorry," Tommy quietly said.

"No...thank you for rescuing me," Hayley answered. "What they're doing to the city...to the world...I could be dead. This is a lot to take in...but I'm glad I'm here. I just..."

"Don't worry," Tommy cut her off. "We'll rescue our friends and families. I promise. We just need a little time."

Tommy forced up a smile and gave a confident nod, and Hayley smiled in return. On that note, the two of them began moving down the hallway, following Trey towards the other Rangers, only hoping they could form some kind of plan.

* * *

**A/N: That's all for now...I'll have something else up hopefully much sooner this time around! Thanks to those who are still here! As always, please leave a review!**


	21. The Unexpected

**Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers.**

**A/N: And this one comes out as well! I always say, my stories will finish, no matter how long it takes. Still, I hope to get more constant updates from here on out.**

**

* * *

**

"Get away from the door!" Captain White shouted to the civilians near the steel enforced main door to the command room. Some began to scatter, but it was too late for most. The doors exploded off their hinges with a loud and bright blast, filling the entry way with smoke.

The entire morale boost the refugees had gotten from defeating that Serpent and the Ranger piloting it had been quickly quashed when Cestro had just returned with another one not long after, bringing a a considerable amount of backup this time. This time there was no defense against the arrival of the Serpents, but to their surprise, they were being raided rather than outright obliterated. Captain Alan White glared as he stood next to General Griffin, watching as a battalion of armed Aquitian soldiers stormed into the room, led by none other than the morphed Red and Blue Alien Rangers.

Aurico pointed to the three that were clearly in charge: Eric, Alan, and Kyle. The three men were standing side by side, and made no movements as the two Rangers approached them. Kyle silently glanced around as the Aquitian soldiers finished securing the room, and the humans were detained properly, many simply holding onto their loved ones while at gunpoint of these aliens.

"Not a bad resistance," Aurico admitted. "Years of experience has taught your military well."

"We like to be prepared, even with the Rangers around," General Eric Griffin sneered. "Good thing, huh?"

"Not quite enough, though," Aurico said in a mocking tone. "Call off your forces and surrender. Live under our rule, and no one else has to die."

Alan White, though, was already reaching for his pistol. "You stupid sons of..."

Cestro's blade was at his throat in an instant, and Alan slowly let go of his weapon, instead going back to staring down the Rangers with a deadly look.

Griffin raised up his left hand, looking to the side. The sudden movement made Cestro move his blade to the general's neck, who only looked back at the Ranger with a curious glance. After a second, Cestro lowered his weapon, and the general looked back over to the computer operator he'd originally looked to, and gave a quick hand signal. The man hesitantly nodded, and quickly got to work at the consoles, under the watchful eyes of his captors.

"There. It's over," Eric said, lowering his hand and looking back to the Alien Rangers. "We're in retreat, you've won. No more casualties."

"Right...but we still have some questions to be answered," Aurico said coldly.

"What a coincidence, so do we," Captain White remarked.

"You're already utilizing the Crystal of Darkness, aren't you?" Kyle asked offhand, watching the carnage downtown on the monitors around them. "It really is a power to behold if it can power that fleet..."

Aurico and Cestro frowned under their helmets, looking to each other. Aurico nodded to the Aquitians, and several kept their eyes on the three of them while they stepped back.

"The Crystal of Darkness is a guarded secret," Aurico commented. "How did he find out?"

"He's the one that knew. But how?" Cestro agreed. "We need to find out more. Let's take him to be interrogated separately."

Aurico nodded in agreement, and the two rejoined the group.

"Everything alright?" Alan asked, mockingly.

"How do you know about the Crystal of Darkness?" Cestro bluntly asked Kyle, causing everyone to look at him.

"I know about plenty of things," Kyle answered simply and shortly.

"I want to know...what you know..." Cestro slowly said.

"If you only knew how wrong you are," Kyle replied.

"You, you, you, and you," Aurico said as he pointed to four special forces members of their detachment. "Take him to the main ship. We'll give him the special treatment. As for the rest of these, round them up!"

"Get them contained. We'll get the info we need from those who have it!" Cestro ordered. "Move out!"

The four Aquitian special forces members silently led Kyle out one exit, while the rest of the troops began rounding up the other people in room. The Alien Rangers, meanwhile, simply turned and walked out the door.

* * *

Jason slowly opened his eyes, looking around the room he was in. It looked like some sort of infirmary, and he was lying in a bed. He brought up his right hand to rub his eyes and...missed? He jumped in place as he looked to see his hand wasn't even there, instead he just had a wrapped up stub.

"What the...!?"

Kimberly jolted awake in the chair next to his bed.

"Jason, you're awake!" she said with a smile as she quickly collected her thoughts.

"What's happening? Where are we? What happened to Earth? Where's my..." Jason began asking a million questions a minute, looking at the medical equipment all over him and around the bed, and fumbling with it in his left hand.

"Calm down, calm down," Kimberly gently interrupted him, putting her hand on his only remaining one, and another on his chest. She noted with worry that his heart seemed to be pounding a million times per second. "You're okay."

"I'm not okay, Kimberly, I'm missing a hand!" Jason said, still panicking. "What happened to the invasion?"

"We had to retreat," Kimberly solemnly said, watching the Jason's face drop into a horrified expression. "They were overrunning us. Tommy and Zack barely got you out in time."

"So...we're...?" Jason asked again, trying to get a feel for the area.

"We're on the Triforian command ship," Kimberly explained. "We're going to regroup, make a new plan, and attack in full force. We managed to get almost all the Rangers, so we'll be able to hit with more force than ever before."

Jason finally slowed his breathing to a bit of a more acceptable level. He was still freaked out, but he knew he had to get under control as soon as possible. He looked back to Kimberly, realizing that this was really the first time they'd seen each other in years. He'd barely paid attention back at the construction site, but she did look well. He could see the worry in her eyes, and immediately began to revert back to his old habits.

"You're looking good, these days, Kim," Jason pleasantly said, forcing up a smile.

"It's good to see you again, too," Kimberly said, laughing lightly.

"You been here with me all this time?" Jason asked.

"Ashley and I have been trading off mostly, with another Ranger filling in here or there," Kim answered. "We're all still here for you."

"I know..." Jason mumbled, looking away from Kim. "I screwed up. Big time."

Kimberly just shook her head, but said nothing. What was she supposed to say, after the awkward times that they'd been through?

"Is Kyle here?" Jason asked. Sure he didn't like the guy, but Kimberly did, obviously. That was reason enough for him to care about his safety.

"No," Kimberly simply replied. "He's...we don't know," She decided it may be best not to delve into the whole 'Aquitian Contact' conspiracy just yet.

"You called me almost every day," Jason said, looking over to her again.

"You never turned off your phone," Kimberly replied.

Jason closed his eyes and smiled.

"I...I freaked out, you know?" Kim said, trying to explain herself. "When you left, it was like a chain reaction. The team just sort of split apart."

"What do you mean?" Jason asked, opening his eyes again. "Everyone started marrying each other and falling in love..."

"We had the big celebrations, and some of us were still very close...but a lot of people got distant. Way more distant than people that have been through what we have should," Kimberly explained. "It all started with me and you...I don't know. I thought I could fix it, somehow."

Jason sighed, and just silently watched her. Kimberly instantly shook her head, though.

"Forget all that," she quickly said, remembering the more pressing matters. "What happened to Billy?"

"Aquitar got him, and did all that to him," Jason said as Kimberly brought her hands to her mouth in horror. "Trey helped him escape."

"I barely recognized him," Kimberly whispered. "I can't believe those...those monsters were our friends."

"We thought they were," Jason said, shaking his head. "They'd been plotting it for awhile, they had to have been."

Kimberly shook her head. This was so much to take in all at once. The years had been harsh on them all, and this was a pretty big climax to top it off. She took a deep breath, and almost jumped a bit when she felt Jason take her hand in his. She looked at him and saw him giving that familiar, comforting smile. She smiled back, put at peace by the fact that after all kinds of conflict and strain...some things really never changed.

* * *

Kyle Maddox remained silent as he walked down the halls of the military base, with a special forces Aquitian on every side of him. The four of them towered above him, and were incredibly bulked up. With his fairly average stature, they hadn't even seen the need to handcuff him. He looked around the hallway they were walking down, it was very plain, very empty. Wide open, with no obstacles of any sort in the way. Just the five of them.

_Perfect._

The Aquitians were stunned when Kyle suddenly dropped down low and slid back along the floor. He immediately placed himself behind the group, then stood up and threw a high spin kick that swatted the first one to turn around aside. Wasting no time, he immediately grabbed the second Aquitian that had been near the back, holding him in place while his other two teammates opened fire with their rifles. The Aquitian was killed instantly by the blasts, but Kyle reached onto the dead warrior's belt and pulled a small, fist sized metal stick from it. After that he shoved the slain warrior forwards, knocking the two attackers over with ease. Kyle spun the stick around, and it quickly expanded into a full size staff.

The first recovering Aquitian watched in awe and terror, realizing this human not only was a well trained combatant, but was familiar with Aquitar technology. His thoughts were cut short as that staff was slammed into his temple, sending him incoherently to the floor. Kyle wasted no time and moved forwards, swinging at the other two Aquitians. He caught the first one while he was still on the ground, sending him rolling away. The other one managed to get to his feet, but was rewarded with a quick jab to his stomach with the staff, causing him to hunch forward in pain. Kyle then turned to the other one, who had once again recovered and was moving in. With a powerful upwards swing, he caught him under the chin, knocking the Aquitian backwards, taking note of the blood spraying everywhere, and that the warrrior made no more movement once he hit the ground. Kyle noticed that the staff was bladed at both ends, and immediately stabbed it into the stomach of the other standing Aquitian, sending him to the floor with a gasp as well.

The final Aquitian, laying on the ground and dazed by the blows still, watched in horror as Kyle drew a concealed pistol, and began walking towards him.

"I'm not telling you anything...human!" the Aquitian snarled, as he tried to crawl backwards.

"I know," Kyle said without any emotion, aiming the pistol at him, and firing.

Kyle looked around as the sound of his gunfire echoed through the halls a bit. With a casual shrug, though, he simply holstered his pistol under the back of his shirt once again, and resumed walking in the same direction his former escort had been leading him.

* * *

Tideus turned some controls on his console, marching his Serpent through the streets of Angel Grove. He had taken command of this leg of the mission, and was guiding all the manned Serpents through the city, while also advising the air battle above. All and all, though, it was an easy victory. The human's firepower was nothing to them, they were far outnumbered and outmatched.

"Get into formation," Tideus ordered through the radio. "We are sweeping the city in a line. Nothing escapes us, understood?"

A round of confirmations and acknowledgments came through the radio from his forces, and Tideus smiled. The city was in utter ruins. Fire rose high above the buildings as they crumbled into nothing. The sounds of panic and despair filled his ears. People screaming, the Zords moving and attacking, buildings crumbling. Tideus tapped the side of his helmet, though, when he thought he heard some sort of triumphant music playing faintly in the distance. It sounded like it was coming from a musical instrument of some sort. He shook it off though, focusing back on the mission at hand.

"Command to Yellow Lead," the command operator said through the speakers of his Zord. He was in the main command post, high in orbit, monitoring the invasion.

"This is Tideus," Tideus simply responded into it. "Report."

"The Rangers escaped, sir," command reported back to him, hesitantly. "A Triforian vessel rescued them."

"Do not worry," Tideus said confidently. "We have what they want most, remember?"

"Yes sir," command responded.

"Forward that information to the Red and Blue Rangers at once," Tideus said, preparing his rockets. He frowned at the sign of a red dot on his radar. "Command, can you confirm-"

Tideus was cut shortly as a flurry of missiles tore through his line of zords, destroying a couple outright, and knocking his to the ground.

"Sir, we have an enemy Zord in the immediate area!" command quickly replied.

"Where did it come from!?" Tideus shouted as he got his Serpent back onto its feet, stabilizing the systems and immediately started looking around.

"We would have picked it up if it came from sky or land, the ocean's the only place our scanners can't detect! It had to have come from there!"

Tideus stared in disbelief. He saw the source of the missiles, there in the city streets. It was marching straight towards him and the other Serpents. An old, but unforgettable sight.

The Dragonzord.

"Command, I need you to contact Aurico and Cestro immediately and..." Tideus began, and slowly trailed off as he saw another baffling sight.

High atop one of the few remaining buildings, he saw a shadowy figure, playing away on the Dragon Dagger. Now he recognized that music he'd been hearing. How could he forget that tune? He naturally jerked in place when this strange person stopped playing. It was only for a second, though, as the figure then played the alternative tune on the Dragon Dagger, giving the Dragonzord a new set of orders.

The figure then held the Dragon Dagger in it's left hand, facing Tideus's Zord. As it did, a large sword materialized from thin air, and the being gripped it in it's right hand.

Just as Tideus was about to ask the operator what was happening, he realized it would be unnecessary. For that figure spread a large pair of wings from its back, which let out a golden glow. And then, it leaped from the building, flying right at him.

* * *

**A/N: What's going to happen next? Find out soon, and leave a review in the meantime!**


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